Miguel Ángel López suspended by Astana-Qazaqstan over trafficking allegations
Miguel Ángel López suspended by Astana-Qazaqstan over trafficking allegations
Astana-Qazaqstan has suspended Miguel Ángel López until further notice after news broke yesterday that he is being investigated for alleged trafficking of pharmaceuticals.
López’s team provided a brief statement on social media Friday morning in which they said that they had been “caught … by surprise” by media reports of López being taken in for questioning.
The news that was spread in the media yesterday evening caught us by surprise, and at the moment we do not have any details. In this regard, the team decided to suspend Miguel Angel Lopez from any activity within the team until all the circumstances of the case are clarified.
— Astana Qazaqstan Team (@AstanaQazTeam) July 22, 2022
The Colombian climber was in transit from Colombia to Spain to resume his season, having last raced in the 2022 Giro d’Italia. He was met at Madrid’s Adolfo Suárez airport by agents of the Central Operations Unit (UCO) of the Judicial Police Service of the Civil Guard, who are investigating López’s connection to Dr Marcos Maynar, a sports science professor who has been implicated in a number of alleged doping cases. He is not currently sanctioned by any governing bodies including the UCI.
López had previously been summoned as a witness in a case against Maynar, but has since had his status changed to ‘under investigation’.
The 28-year-old’s race calendar was planned around a tilt at the GC of the Vuelta a España, a race he has finished as high as third overall. Unless Astana-Qazaqstan promptly resolves its outstanding questions around López’s involvement in this case, that now appears unlikely. The Colombian is expected in court in Cáceres in autumn.
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