Former Androni-Giocattoli rider Carlos Gálviz has been notified of a positive test for the anabolic steroid Boldenone and has been provisionally suspended on the eve of the Vuelta al Táchira.
Venezuela's anti-doping body, the Comisión Nacional Antidopaje, told Cyclingnews that the infraction relates to an out-of-competition control conducted in early December ahead of the Vuelta a Costa Rica, in which Gálviz represented the Venezuelan national team. He finished second on the final stage and 14th overall.
Gálviz, 26, now has the opportunity to ask for his B-sample to be tested but if it confirms the original finding, he faces a ban that would almost certainly rule him out of competing at this summer's Olympic Games, which take place in Rio, on his home continent.
Gálviz was due to race the Vuelta al Táchira in Venezuela starting on Friday, a race which he won in 2014. He finished second in the race but was eventually awarded the victory when it transpired that winner Jimmy Briceño had tested positive for banned products. The Androni team tried to sign both riders soon after the race had finished, only for the Briceño deal to stall when tests showed the rider had a hematocrit level of 63 per cent.
