Davide Rebellin (CCC Polsat Polkowice) finished in the lead group on the Tour of Poland's first stage(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
The CCC Polsat riders warm up on their Guerciotti bikes(Image credit: Stephen Farrand)
The bright orange jerseys of CCC Polsat Polkowice patrol the bunch(Image credit: Bosco Martin)
The team of CCC Polsat Polkowice prior to the start of stage five in Haikou.(Image credit: Shane Goss)
Davide Rebellin (CCC Polsat) lost ground on the GC(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
The upcoming Tour of Portugal will be one team short after the last minute exclusion of the CCC Polsat team. The team has been removed from the event website and the CCC Polsat team has similarly removed any mention of the Tour of Portugal from its website.
The even organisers claim the team failed to submit the required documentation and thus their registration was invalid. This event comes as a bizarre twist to the trail of the team that includes multiple Flèche Wallonne winner Davide Rebellin.
Rebellin tested positive for EPO-CERA during the 2008 Olympic Road Race where he won the silver medal. CCC Polsat is the 3rd team Rebellin has ridden for in as many years following his suspension.
The 41-year-old has provided CCC Polsat with four victories so far this year. He claimed two stages at the Szlakiem Grodòw Piastowskich tour in May. He followed this by winning the opening stage and the overall classification at the Sibiu Tour in Romania.
The exclusion from the Tour of Portugal over a technicality presents a serious setback for Rebellin who was considered by many a strong contender for the overall title. The tour which runs from the 7th to the 18th of August will now be run with just 17 teams with organisers choosing not to replace the Polish team.
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