The Astana Qazaqstan Development Team have fired Ilkhan Dostiyev after the 22-year-old Kazakh rider tested positive for the blood booster drug CERA.
Dostiyev won a stage and finished second overall in the prestigious Giro Ciclistico della Valle d'Aosta race in July but then was tested by anti-doping authorities, apparently out of competition, on July 30.
He went on to win the Turul Romaniei stage race in Romania in August and rode the recent Tour of Hainan in China as part of the Astana Qazaqstan WorldTour team. In the spring he finished second overall at the Tour du Rwanda, behind Britain's Joe Blackmore (Israel-Premier Tech).
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Dostiyev's name was added to the UCI list of suspended licence holders on September 9, with the notion confirming that Dostiyev tested positive for CERA. He will now face an anti-doping tribunal hearing and risks a ban of four years.
Continuous erythropoietin receptor activator (CERA) is the generic term for third-generation erythropoiesis-stimulating agents that act like EPO, the drug widely used as a blood doping drug in the nineties and beyond.
Riccardo Riccò tested positive for CERA at the 2008 Tour de France, with other riders testing positive for the drug in the years to follow. The blood-boosting benefit of CERA can, in theory, be identified via WADA's Athlete Biological Passport longitudinal blood testing.
The Astana Qazaqstan team said that Dostiyev subsequently admitted to using the banned substance, and provided explanations to the team and the UCI. He was then immediately suspended and his contract was terminated.
The Astana Qazaqstan Development Team denied any responsibility.
"This news came as a shock and disappointment to us. We trusted Ilkhan Dostiyev as one of the team’s leaders and we had great expectations for him, which are now completely shattered," Alexandr Shushemoin, head directeur sportif said.
"I can state with absolute certainty that the Astana Qazaqstan Development Team has no connection to this incident. Our team adheres to a ‘zero-tolerance’ policy, we work continuously with the riders and do our best to ensure that athletes understand not only the consequences of using doping but also the absurdity of attempting to violate anti-doping rules.
"Given that Dostiyev has admitted to the anti-doping violation, the rider has been suspended from racing, and his contract has been immediately terminated. We are now cooperating fully and openly with all organisations involved to clarify all the details of what happened."
