The twilight zone called Portugal.

Page 21 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
Sep 14, 2009
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Guys, I don't know what you're on about, Portuguese cycling is as clean as the screen of a smart phone. Nothing to see!
 
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Sep 29, 2013
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The portuguese federation decided to make the biological passport mandatory for every rider and the cost will be supported by the teams, unless the rider is under-23.

They also decided that none of the staff, coaches and DS's of the teams can have anti-doping violations in the past.
 
Apr 10, 2019
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The portuguese federation decided to make the biological passport mandatory for every rider and the cost will be supported by the teams, unless the rider is under-23.

They also decided that none of the staff, coaches and DS's of the teams can have anti-doping violations in the past.
That's the one thing that I've wanted the UCI to do for years.

Looks like the federation is actually trying to make the domestic scene a bit cleaner after that big police raid.
 
Apr 10, 2019
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Ok, now apparently Jose Neves and Jorge Magalhaes also got suspended by the NADA.
Looks like Amaro will be the only one to survive the downfall of W52, probably because of his Volta wins...
 
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Feb 17, 2017
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I thought the Portuguese conti teams were already under some sort of bio passport? They said as much when the Porto raids kicked off in the spring... or was that just PR?
 
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Apr 10, 2019
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I thought the Portuguese conti teams were already under some sort of bio passport? They said as much when the Porto raids kicked off in the spring... or was that just PR?
There was already a form of bio passport system in place, that's how Alarcon got caught.
 
Feb 17, 2017
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It wasn't mandatory. Only some riders had it.

In that case this has the potential to be a real game changer if it's actually enacted, no?

Could this be behind the recent decisions to retire of riders such as Alex Marque, Tiago Machado, Veloso, etc?
 
Sep 29, 2013
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Nah, they're just old.

Also, Machado had the bio passport during most of his career. He did nothing these last few years. I'm surprised he didn't retire sooner.
 
Jun 25, 2015
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Jesus. That's a bad scene in Portugal. Can't imagine the pressure to shove stuff into your body.
 
Apr 10, 2019
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Wow, a seven year ban for Joao Rodrigues. Both a passport violation and possession of banned substances.
 
Feb 20, 2010
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Joni and Ze will be 33 and 34 respectively by the next Volta, which means they are fine to compete.

João winning the race at age 26 brought the race into disrepute, so he had to be banned until he is old enough to contest the GC without causing embarrassment to the race.
 
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Apr 15, 2016
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Are the climbing times in Volta even faster than times in WT races since 2020? Before then the likes of Alarcon were faster but dunno now. ( didn't follow cycling in the last 3 years as much as I did before )
 
This is weeks news but Glassdrive's DS, Ruben Pereira, said that their involvement with the Maynar links was only related to training plans for their riders and they ended their partnership in August 2021. I wonder why they ended their partnership right in the month of the Volta which landed them 6 stage wins and the appearance of Super Maurio, who only didn't won the GC because in 2021 he still couldn't control his bike.

They're a tough crowd, to not be happy with training plans that give them this kind of results.
 
Apr 10, 2019
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This is weeks news but Glassdrive's DS, Ruben Pereira, said that their involvement with the Maynar links was only related to training plans for their riders and they ended their partnership in August 2021. I wonder why they ended their partnership right in the month of the Volta which landed them 6 stage wins and the appearance of Super Maurio, who only didn't won the GC because in 2021 he still couldn't control his bike.

They're a tough crowd, to not be happy with training plans that give them this kind of results.
Tbf, they need proper Volta watts, not those bushleague WT watts!
 
Sep 16, 2010
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To me this reeks of a silent ban/deal behind close doors
Or there could be a passport case ongoing.

As with Superman, a team firing a rider doesn't suggest "a silent ban/secret deal" - it suggests the team knows something you don't.
 

PhiLiz

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Sep 8, 2015
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How funny is to read some previous reactions from Porco fans... And this is only the beginning since the criminal case is a serious one and, at the very least, Ribeiro and Quintanilha are facing real prison sentences, not just fines and suspended sentences.

Amaro proves again he was the smartest of the bunch: not only was he the only one relatively untouched on the initial investigation, he's also getting out to preserve his triumphs although I have serious doubts that he'll have his results intact after the trial.
 
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Aug 8, 2017
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Before his announcement, UCI had notified Amaro Antunes for changes registered in his biological passport. The Portuguese Federation is mulling voiding of a winner Volta editions from 2017 to 2021.

 
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