Euskaltel Euskadi rider Aketza Peña has returned a positive test for the anabolic steroid nandrolone following analysis of a urine sample taken after stage one of the Giro del Trentino on April 24. The UCI informed Peña's team that the 26 year-old's A sample contained a level of nandrolone above that permitted, but did not reveal the exact value.
The Spanish team have taken the decision to withdraw Peña from the Giro d'Italia and suspend him from the team pending the result of the B-sample analysis. Nandrolone occurs naturally in the human body, albeit in small quantities, but has been used by athletes to increase muscle mass.
