Rosendo's blood readings due to haemorrhoids?

The Andalucía-CajaSur team have suspended Jesús Rosendo Prado after he was named as one of the three riders snared by the biological passport, but have also issued a statement suggesting a possible explanation for his dubious blood test readings.

On Monday, the International Cycling Union (UCI) requested the appropriate cycling federations to open disciplinary proceedings against Rosendo, Franco Pellizotti and Tadej Valjavec, based on apparent blood value irregularities.

In the statement, the Spanish Pro Continental team say Rosendo received a communiqué from the UCI on March 1 stating that they had detected an increase in his oxygen transference based on blood test results obtained between May 19, 2008, and September 27, 2009.

The statement says: "Between these dates the only blood test result that we can define as abnormal was the one taken on April 20, 2009, which showed haemoglobin and haematocrit levels were very low, suggesting anaemia as a result of bleeding that the rider had suffered on April 8, 2009, due to haemorrhoids (the UCI has a medical note confirming this bleeding). For this reason, the level of reticulocytes increased. As well as the medical note already mentioned, the rider also presented statements from haematology specialists who confirmed their confidence in the normality of this clinical data."