Vacansoleil-DCM, the Dutch team that will fold at the end of the year because of sponsor woes, is reported to have worked with an unqualified doctor during the 2011 season.
According to a report in Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, the squad hired Daniel De Martelaere at the start of the 2011 campaign and he worked on the team’s medical staff for six months. The report claims De Martelaere was not a fully qualified doctor.
The report says De Martelaere told the team he coached endurance athletes and was educated in the United States. The team, however, claims De Martelaere was hired as a chemist, not a medical doctor.
“In 2011, the group of doctors were all active on a part-time basis,” the team said in a translated statement.
The team went on to say that De Martelaere specialized in blood levels and doping controls, and that he was hired as a chemist.
The Belgian Cycling Federation, which issued a license to De Martelaere, reacted to the news in a De Standaard report.
“We committed an administrative error. We should have verified if this man really was a doctor,” federation director Tom Van Damme said. “I deeply regret that Vacansoleil didn’t report anything in 2011. We would have expected more honesty and responsibility from a WorldTour team.”
De Martelaere was reportedly dispatched to Italy in 2011 after Riccardo Rico’s botched blood transfusion at his home. After the incident, Vacansoleil released Ricco from its roster.
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via VeloNews.com http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/11/news/report-vacansoleil-hired-unqualified-doctor-in-2011_309672
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