Óscar Sevilla: I hope Miguel Ángel López is treated differently than I was

Oscar Sevilla and Miguel Angel Lopez (Team Medellin-EPM) wear a jersey showing the flag of Argentina and the number 10 of Lionel Messi during the 39th Vuelta a San Juan International 2023
Oscar Sevilla and Miguel Angel Lopez (Team Medellin-EPM) wear a jersey showing the flag of Argentina and the number 10 of Lionel Messi during the 39th Vuelta a San Juan International 2023 (Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

For now, Miguel Ángel López may describe his dismissal from Astana as a mere parenthesis and his time at Continental outfit Medellín-EPM as something of a gap year, but his new teammate Óscar Sevilla knows the realities of the plight.

Now 46 years of age, Sevilla turned professional with Kelme in 1998, but his career at the top level effectively ended with the Operación Puerto eight years later. The Spaniard didn't receive a formal suspension for his implication in the blood doping inquiry, but the damning, half-talk code of Dr Eufemiano Fuentes' files condemned him all the same.

Barry Ryan
Head of Features

Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.