Police in Italy arrest pro cyclist & others

[Anonymous]

I really liked this part:



Operation Cobra-Red Maybe they are trying to catch the Cobra red handed???

thats the first thing that jumped out at me. The italians clearly have a sense of humour.

 

[theswordsman]

I'm skimming Google News for other snippets of info. This about one of the amateur cyclists:

amateur cyclist, David Panucci, found in possession of 80 packets of Ormetazepan a strong narcotic drug.

http://www.agi.it/in-primo-piano/no...ti_anche_cognato_ricco_e_agente_pubblicitario

 

[rhubroma]

I disagree. I think Ricco is stupid.

The nickname of this operation is either a very odd coincidence or a clear indication of who the main target of the investigation is.

Naw, just not a tool. If that makes him "stupid" then you make your point.

 

[hektoren]

It wasn't a sportswriter, but the story is only a paragraph so I'm not posting it. Again, if someone who has Italian would please help us out with the details? Thanks

http://www.tuttobiciweb.it/index.php?page=news&cod=32867&tp=n

He's not a sports-journo, he's a publicist: Nicolas Vanegas Sanchez, former amateur cyclist, and linked to his long-time friend Enrico Rossi. He's even the webeditor for Rossi's homepage. Vanegas is currently under temporary test-assignment to Dea Pubblicitá, as confirmed by Tony Lo Schiavo, VP of BiciSport. (You can even find him referenced in an earlier Forum thread pertaining to the Rossis http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?t=5868&page=20 )

I believe you can find his Tony Montana-esque figure on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/equinoisback

You'll find Enrico Rossis fanpage at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=35639920671 and editors of that site is Nicolas Vanegas Sanchez AND Vania Rossi. The plot thickens.....

 

[theswordsman]

He's not a sports-journo, he's a publicist: Nicolas Vanegas Sanchez, former amateur cyclist, and linked to his long-time friend Enrico Rossi. He's even the webeditor for Rossi's homepage. Vanegas is currently under temporary test-assignment to Dea Pubblicitá, as confirmed by Tony Lo Schiavo, VP of BiciSport. (You can even find him referenced in an earlier Forum thread pertaining to the Rossis http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?t=5868&page=20 )

Thanks. I got the publicist part, and the website thing, but the translation got sketchy after that. An update made it seem like he's also involved with some cycling sites.

If anyone uses twitter on the web, avoid it like the plague right now. It's automatically retweeting some stranger over and over and trying to send direct messages.

 

[hektoren]

Thanks. I got the publicist part, and the website thing, but the translation got sketchy after that. An update made it seem like he's also involved with some cycling sites.

If anyone uses twitter on the web, avoid it like the plague right now. It's automatically retweeting some stranger over and over and trying to send direct messages.

If you head on over to Enrico Rossi's Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=35639920671#!/EnricoRossiSaraMussoni you'll find a little nugget. Under personal info, he clearly states that he's interested in "network-building".......


And on Vania Rossi's wall at Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=35639920671#!/profile.php?id=1298363554&v=wall you'l find that her latest entry, 16 hours ago and thus predating the dawn-raids today, was posting the music-video "Inaspettata" (Unexpected)

 

[Ferminal]

I'm skimming Google News for other snippets of info. This about one of the amateur cyclists:


http://www.agi.it/in-primo-piano/no...ti_anche_cognato_ricco_e_agente_pubblicitario

What's this? A mispelling of Temazepam? Or some other Benzodiazepine?

(What are their applications to doping?)

 

[JPM London]

If anyone uses twitter on the web, avoid it like the plague right now. It's automatically retweeting some stranger over and over and trying to send direct messages.

And we all know Floyd hacks websites for fun - he's in on it too!

 

[Race Radio]

funny how the more raids like this the slower Italian cycling gets

 

[red_flanders]

I don't know why these people insist on digging up cycling's past. The offenses must have happened over 6 hours ago.

 

[theswordsman]

And we all know Floyd hacks websites for fun - he's in on it too!

Mine is Matt Gascoigne from New Zealand, AKA matsta, who says he <3 the black hat world. I'd been in the account for hours, then I clicked over, the screen was covered, and it was popping out error messages about direct messages, and I could see it typing in "RT matsta" but I couldn't do anything about it. In the news they say it's activated by something I didn't even do. It's sending other people to porn sites, or stealing the passwords from their computers. It's pretty grim.

 

[Señor_Contador]

[...]Riccò broke up with her as a result of the positive A sample, saying he didn’t want it to affect his career.[...]

I laughed so hard when I read the above lines...

Riccó's got some balls.

 

[Anonymous]

I don't know why these people insist on digging up cycling's past. The offenses must have happened over 6 hours ago.

Too good

 

[Roland Rat]

I don't know why these people insist on digging up cycling's past. The offenses must have happened over 6 hours ago.

Besides, it is un-Italian to pursue dopers and organised crime.

 

[theswordsman]

La Gazzetta has a 2 minute video about this

http://www.gazzetta.it/Ciclismo/21-09-2010/doping-operazione-nas-711202751426.shtml

 

[rhubroma]

this is just business to them. they don't see it any other terms, they know they have to avoid the authorities, but that goes for lots of italian society. recently it became illegal to buy anything in italy and not to receive a receipt and if you did not get one the law states you must ask for one. to combat the black market selling that goes on and tax evasion.

That's right there is a certain pervasive Italian mentality of being furbo (sly), that goes from anything to subtly butting in line at la posta to taking residency in Monte Carlo to avoid paying taxes (for those who can afford it) to entering politics to make the laws to avoid going to jail alla Berlusconi, etc. Not by chance that the only Western democracy to have a business tycoon (from Milan) dominate the political scene for the past 20 years is Italy. That a certain percentage of the population finds the situation embarrassing and shameful is another story.

It is said that Italy is a land of anarchists who try to pretend that they are living in a democracy. The idea being that the government (or any institution that establishes the rules) is merely an abuse of political power to help those who have it maintain it at your expense. Thus breaking the rules is merely a way to "survive" and "claim back" what those rules established by a corrupt system and class have put in place to keep you down. It is an easy leap from there to finding justification in just about anything that works in your favor. This results in a mentality which says its only breaking the rules if I get caught and a society in which everyone is suspect and nobody is "playing fair." Nothing is "immoral" in a world without "scruples," legality is for the pusillanimous or the fool and here, in the worst scenario, is where the mafia culture is to be found.

I'm making broad generalizations and many Italians don't feel that way of course, though a surprising number do. And in the cycling community it is this mentality which rules.

 

[Señor_Contador]

La Gazzetta dello Sport are a funny bunch. Just a couple days ago, while Mosquera was giving Nibali a run for his money, one of their "cycling experts" was quick to put Ezequiel on the hot seat, openly asking him to account for his "sudden" increase in "efficiency". Which is legal equivalent of insinuating doping. How dare he bring the fight to a Son of Italy!

Today, Riccó's brother in-law gets busted with his grandmother's medication.

Priceless.

 

[neineinei]

La Gazzetta dello Sport are a funny bunch. Just a couple days ago, while Mosquera was giving Nibali a run for his money, one of their "cycling experts" was quick to put Ezequiel on the hot seat, openly asking him to account for his "sudden" increase in "efficiency". How dare he bring the fight to a Son of Italy!

Today, Riccó's brother in-law gets busted with his grandmother's medication.

Priceless.

They shouldn't ask riders from other nations if they are doping because there is doping in Italy?

 

[Ferminal]

La Gazzetta dello Sport are a funny bunch. Just a couple days ago, while Mosquera was giving Nibali a run for his money, one of their "cycling experts" was quick to put Ezequiel on the hot seat, openly asking him to account for his "sudden" increase in "efficiency". Which is legal equivalent of insinuating doping. How dare he bring the fight to a Son of Italy!

Today, Riccó's brother in-law gets busted with his grandmother's medication.

Priceless.

In contrast to Spain, Italian authorities actually pursue doping investigations.

Or did the cover up of OP not happen?

 

[Benotti69]

In contrast to Spain, Italian authorities actually pursue doping investigations.

very true, they appear to be trying, but have not yet busted any big dealers...

Or did the cover up of OP not happen?

it would seem that the Spanish sporting authorities are encouraging doping across the board....

 

[D Avoid]

I think Richy reeks OK , leave 'im alone, 'es cleaner than Domestos.

 

[Vonn Brinkman]

They shouldn't ask riders from other nations if they are doping because there is doping in Italy?

It's simply a hypocrisy issue.

 

[Dr. Maserati]

I don't know why these people insist on digging up cycling's past. The offenses must have happened over 6 hours ago.

+1 ..... and I will add that its a waste of taxpayers money, its just a tradition of the sport, am whats SSDD in Italian, ah they should just draw a line in the sand but say "from this day forward..."

 

[JPM London]

Any wild guesses yet as to who the remaining pros targeted might be?

 

[CycloErgoSum]

And the name of the police-operation was "Cobra-Red"!!!! Hilarious!

They really telegraphed that one: Cobra = Ricco, Red = Rossi (rosso).