Ezequiel Mosquera attended the presentation in hopes his doping case will be overturned (Image credit: Bert Geerts/dcp-bertgeerts@xs4all.nl)
Although the Spanish Federation are yet to issue their expected two-year ban for Ezequiel Mosquera, Vacansoleil-DCM has told Cyclingnews that they expected the rider to be banned after Oscar Sevilla was suspended under similar circumstances.
Mosquera tested positive at the Vuelta in 2010 for Hydroxyethyl Starch (HES) but has had to wait over a year for his case to reach a point where a decision at least looks imminent. He has professed his innocence throughout and has not raced for the Dutch team.
“Until now it’s all rumours so I just want to wait at the moment. To be honest we were expecting this,” team boss, Daan Luijkx told Cyclingnews.
Sevilla tested positive for the same substance at the 2010 Vuelta a Colombia and was given a six month ban.
“When you look at the Sevilla case we expected a suspension but we still want to wait until a formal decision is made. We’re really disappointed though, with the entire story. It’s taken over a year to get to this point. That’s not good for anyone, the sport, the riders, the fans or the team. It’s inhumane.”
If Mosquera is handed any form of suspension Vacansoleil will comply with their regulations and terminate his contract with immediate affect. He is currently ineligible to race, a status he and his team agreed upon last year after his positive test was announced.
“We have internal regulations that state that when a rider is suspended for doping his contract is torn up right away.”
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Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.
