After news of a positive doping control for the third generation form of EPO, CERA, double Italian cyclo-cross champion Vania Rossi has claimed that she is innocent. The control was taken at the National Cyclo-cross Championships on January 20th, where she finished in second place.
"I can't believe it. I have done nothing of the accusations against me," Rossi told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. "I've never used banned substances, and especially not now," explaining that she has been breastfeeding her child since last July.
"On Sunday while waiting for verification I was breast feeding my son. If I had taken CERA, or anything else, I should be thrown in jail," she added.
Rossi is the partner of Italian cyclist Riccardo Riccò, and the two have a son together. Riccò had also tested positive for CERA during the 2008 Tour de France when the substance was thought to be undetectable. With his suspension set to end just before the 2010 edition of Milan San Remo, he has managed to sign a contract with the Italian Ceramica Flaminia team.
Riccò now claims that he is riding clean after serving a shortened ban for helping with the investigation. While the positive test of his partner does not imply Riccò is himself doping, the news certainly comes at a bad time.