Hondo to plead for acquittal

According to German news agency dpa, former Gerolsteiner rider Danilo Hondo will plead for acquittal at the trial of his case before a Swiss court, which is scheduled to take place "in the end of May or the beginning of June", his lawyer said. Hondo maintains he did not recur to doping, although both A and B samples at the Tour of Murcia were positive for Carphedon, a n amphetamine drug on the list of banned substances similar to Bromatan. His contract with Team Gerolsteiner was subsequently terminated.

At the trial, Hondo will be represented by Michael Lehner, who also assured the defence of former German athlete and Olympic medal winner Dieter Baumann during his doping case in the late nineties. "I wouldn't support my client if I didn't think that there are chances to clear him," Lehner said. Hondo faces a two-year ban from professional cycling, and the exclusion of a ProTour team for another two years.