Sports doctors threatens legal action against the media
Dr Michele Ferrari leaves a tribunal in Bologna, Italy in 2004. (Image credit: AFP)
Dr Michele Ferrari has announced that he is willing to meet with the Italian magistrate Benedetto Roberti who is investigating the doctor's links to numerous professional riders, as well as his involvement with the US-based Federal investigation into Lance Armstrong and the US Postal Service team.
After a series of revelations in Gazzetta dello Sport, Dr Ferrari has also threatened to take legal action against the media or individuals to defend his reputation.
In a note issued by his lawyer Dario Bolognesi, Dr Ferrari criticised the ruling of the Italian Olympic Committee in 2002 that banned him for life from working with licence holding athletes.
“It’s anachronistic and unjust, because the trial held in Bologna showed a lack of proof on which the decision itself was based.”
"It was based on a report by an expert consultant whose findings have been disproved by other experts during the trial.”
Dr Ferrari went on trial in Bologna in 2005 for sporting fraud and illegally acting as a pharmacist in 2004. He was found guilty and given an 11-month suspended sentence but was later cleared of the illegal acting as a pharmacist on appeal. The accusations of sporting fraud were quashed due to the slow legal process in Italy and the statute of limitations.
Lance Armstrong worked with Dr Ferrari for several years while dominating the Tour de France but announced he had cut his professional ties in 2004 when Dr Ferrari was found guilty. Last week the Texan’s spokesman Mark Fabiani confirmed that Armstrong is still a personal friend and last saw Dr. Ferrari about a year ago.
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Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.
