Ban recommended for Di Luca

The Italian Olympic Committee recommended on Thursday that Giro d'Italia champion Danilo Di Luca be banned for four months for alleged doping.

At about the same time, Di Luca announced at the world championships in Stuttgart, Germany, that he was withdrawing from Italy's team for Sunday's road race.

The Olympic committee (CONI) found levels in Di Luca's system that normally corresponds to a child in a surprise test taken during his Giro win in June.

After a three-month wait, CONI was given permission by the International Cycling Union on Wednesday to compare the abnormal test with other exams on Di Luca.

CONI would not divulge the results of the comparison tests performed on Thursday but it did indicate the findings warranted a suspension.

The case will now move to CONI's disciplinary panel.

If Di Luca is proven to have doped during the Giro, he could be stripped of the title.

The abnormal test came after the 17th stage of the Giro on May 30, a climb up Monte Zoncolan that was considered the toughest in this year's race. Di Luca finished fourth, 31 seconds behind stage winner Gilberto Simoni.

Oil for drugs

CONI also monitored a court hearing in Pescara on Thursday concerning the four-year-old doping investigation known as the "Oil for Drugs" case.

On July 12, Di Luca was cleared of involvement by CONI in the case, but new evidence had reportedly surfaced.

Pescara public prosecutor Aldo Aceto requested that the case be dismissed, the ANSA news agency reported.

The "Oil for Drugs" case centers on Di Luca and several other athletes who allegedly received doping products from Italian doctor Carlo Santuccione.

Di Luca has always denied doping. Santuccione already served a five-year suspension from the Italian cycling federation from 1995-2000.

Source: www.ndtv.com