Jakob Fuglsang (Astana) issued a brief statement on Monday denying reports that he has met with banned doctor Michele Ferrari.
The Danish rider, winner of the Critérium du Dauphiné, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and a stage of the Vuelta a España in 2019, was reportedly named in a 24-page intelligence report commissioned by the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation that speculated that he was "under Michele Ferrari's doping programme".
The Danish and Norwegian press outlets that broke the story – Politiken, DR and VG – obtained statements from 12 people close to the sport who allege Fuglsang has been working with Ferrari. But statements from Astana – who say working with outside doctors is prohibited in the team – and Fuglsang indicate that no procedures have been opened in relation to the allegations.
"I contest that I have met with Dr Ferrari," Fuglsang wrote on Instagram. "I am not aware of any report and I can confirm no procedure has even been opened by competent anti-doping authorities against me. Accordingly, I have no case to answer. I am extremely concerned that such rumours could be spread out in the press."
Teammate Alexey Lutsenko, whom the reports claim was present at a meeting between Fuglsang and Ferrari, posted a message on Instagram denying the reports, using the same wording as Fuglsang.
According to the reports, the intelligence provided by CADF "indicates that Michele Ferrari was present at the Volta a Catalunya with the Astana Pro Team in March 2019, has a base in Lugano, Switzerland, and has recently met with Fuglsang and [teammate Alexey] Lutsenko in Nice and/or Monaco."
Ferrari denied having any contact with the Astana riders, writing on his website 53x12.com that he has not had any contact with Astana or its riders for more than a decade, has not been to Monaco where the alleged contact occurred, has not been to a bike race since 1994 and has never been to Lugano.
After the US Anti-Doping Agency's lengthy investigation into doping at the US Postal Service Team, Ferrari was banned for life from the sport along with the team's doctor, Luis Garcia del Moral, and trainer Jose "Pepe" Martí. Team Manager Johan Bruyneel was also banned for life, while Lance Armstrong was stripped of all seven Tour de France titles and received a lifetime ban. Armstrong settled a fraud case with the US government for $5 million in 2018.
