IOC and Italian police at odds over doping raids

By Karolos Grohmann

TURIN (Reuters) – The International Olympic Committee and
Italian police on Monday remained at odds over two large
anti-doping raids at the houses of Austrian athletes competing
in the Turin Winter Olympics.

While the IOC says it only found out about them on the same
evening they took place, Italian police insist they were a
joint operation with the IOC.

This contradiction is further proof of an uneasy
relationship between the IOC and the Italians, following months
of wrangling over who will control doping during the Games.

Dozens of armed Italian police stormed the two houses of
the Austrian biathlon and cross-country skiing athletes in San
Sicario and Pragelato late on Saturday as IOC doping officials
took 10 of them to a nearby clinic for testing.

The raids came days after the IOC received a report from
the World Anti-Doping Agency that the Austrian team might have
been visited by coach Walter Mayer, banned from the Games until
beyond 2010 for blood doping at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games.

“On Saturday evening,” said Giselle Davies, IOC Director of
Communication said when asked when the IOC was informed of the
raids.

Davies said Italian authorities acted alone after they had
received a copy of the WADA report from the IOC.

But the police on Sunday stressed the anti-doping raids
were conducted together with the IOC.

“The operation took place in full cooperation with the IOC
which at the same time tested several athletes for doping. This
was done with maximum discretion and without any inconvenience,
police said in a statement.

“TREATED LIKE CRIMINALS”

But Davies said the only collaboration was in the form of
giving the police the report and informing them of the time
they would test the athletes.

“It seems from their side (police) the timing was matched,”
Davies said.

The operation raised more questions regarding a deal struck
between the IOC and Italy over who would be in control of
doping tests during the Games.

It has also turned into a public relations disaster with
even Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel calling the
operation wrong and criticizing Italy for treating Austria’s
athletes “like criminals and interrogating them for five
hours.”

The Italian government, which introduced strict doping laws
before it won the right to host the Turin Olympics, refused to
change them according to IOC rules which foresee only non-penal
sanctions for drugs users.

Doping is considered a criminal offence in Italy, which can
be punished with a suspended prison sentence.

A last-minute compromise which brought an Italian official
into the Games anti-drugs squad failed to impose a moratorium
of launching criminal investigations into the athletes found
drugged during the Games.

Italy has already started criminal investigations in a
Russian biathlon athlete who was stripped of her silver medal
after testing positive for drugs as well as against Mayer.