Some never learn. At least that's how you could describe the person Riccardo Ricco these days. The Italian enjoyed a meteoric rise at the 2008 Giro d'Italia, with stage wins and the jersey of Best Young Pro. However, he later tested positive for CERA during the Tour de France and was suspended. He returned to the peloton in 2010, only to hit the headlines again a few months later with a contaminated autologous blood transfusion. Since then he has been blocked.
But even the twelve-year suspension from licensed sport does not seem to prevent him from using performance-enhancing products.
Ricco, who has been invited to various Gran Fondos in recent months and whose aim was to conquer the most prestigious climbs in the Alps in record time, has now been caught in the act of buying doping products. This was reported by the Italian website The Tyrrhenian Sea. According to them, the Italian was caught red-handed on Tuesday afternoon in the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant in Livorno. In addition to Ricco, a special police unit also provided two dealers. 30 units of an unspecified substance were found near Ricco. Another 100 units and a substantial amount of money were stored in the dealers' apartments.
In Italy, trading in doping preparations is prohibited. The Italian is likely to have another trial, one that will also result in a prison sentence. He is now trying to guard against that. Through his attorney, he informed that he “just in the wrong place at the wrong time” was and that the products did not belong to him but to a friend.