Two former members of the CC Etupes amateur team have been called for questioning for suspected drug trafficking after mailing a package containing five ampoules of EPO, according to French newspaper l’Est Republicain. The judge Christian Kulyk has called Emmanuel Granat and Rémy Mellano, as the two are suspected of sending the EPO to Olivier Marceau, a former triathlon world champion. Just saw this on cyclingnews.com. Is this a new story? Two questioned in France Two former members of the CC Etupes amateur team have been called for questioning for suspected drug trafficking after mailing a package containing five ampoules of EPO, according to French newspaper l’Est Republicain. The judge Christian Kulyk has called Emmanuel Granat and Rémy Mellano, as the two are suspected of sending the EPO to Olivier Marceau, a former triathlon world champion.
ohohoho…cyclingnews stirring crap?
The events are all related on Marceau’s website.
It happened just before the Nice world cup event last season (and long while ago).
It was discussed a lot in lequipe.fr etc…
Marceau has been cleared of everything. He is a very clean guy.
The police in France sees doping as more important that catching killers apparently.
The facts: a guy asked Marceau if a cycling friend of his could stay at his place in Nice for a bit of training. Marceau said yes. Then he asked if he could use his address to have some material sent to him. Marceau said yes. Unbeknown to him that he had EPO sent to his postal address…the cops released all the information before hearing any parties. Then it was in lequipe.fr then on TV.
The two guys admitted they used Marceau’s friendliness and kindness (and naive attitude) and Marceau has been cleared (a while ago…).
maybe cyclingnews.com has better things to do than stirr crap…
This happened a few months ago. Customs found the EPO in Nice. When questioned, Marceau claimed it was for a friend. Said friend came forward and said he’d had it mailed to Marceau’s address for some obscure reason that escapes me now. Marceau incidentally has “switched nations” and scored a qualifying spot for Athens under the Swiss flag…make of it what you will. From my point of view, this is just the tip of the iceberg in our sport. I think the age group ranks are even more rife with this and whatever other products are freely available.
ALL the guys “caught” taking drugs in our sport are said to be “nice guys” by others. I can think of 3 nandralone cases alone in which the accused was and continues to be tagged as "a nice guy . . . "
Only those who know them best can “know” one way or the other . . . and even then, do they? Your claiming Marceau is a nice guy and naive is exactly what was said about Ben Johnson. It may be so but it has nothing to do with the damning circumstances he was in.
A former world champion who is clean as a whistle should NEVER be that naive. The whole thing smells to me, in part also because he is now all of a sudden racing for Switzerland. And when it comes to linking one country with EPO, SUI has to be near the top of the list.
Marceau switched to Switzerland for disagreement with the french fed (and as you live in france, you know they’re a pain in the butt to deal with)…
Besides, he ALWAYS had dual citizenship…he did what many aussies did, go to an other country to make sure he can go to the games…
He was cleared in the story. wasn’t charged with anything and there is no reason why in sport more than in life you have to prove you are not guilty…
innocent until proven guilty applies here as well…
maybe you’ve spent too much time in France already. That said, yes there is CERTAINLY EPO in Triathlon, maybe Marceau is on, but he was cleared.
Isn’t “naive” a french word? I think you’re being extremely naive now. I’m not saying that Marceau is “clean or dirty”, but to come out and publicaly defend an athlete, ANY athlete, is a very naive atitude. One thing sports history should teach us is to never vouch for any athlete. This is very sad, I know, but true…
I am not publicly defending an athlete, just the fact that you are innocent until proven guilty…
if it’s true for killers, rapists etc…shouldn’t it be true for athletes as well?
Merci Francois. I didn’t have time to check around so figured I could post here and have the research done for me. I like Marceau as an athlete, so was curious.
You’re right, anything with the words “French” and “Fed” in the same line usually means more pain-in-the-ass dealings. Which makes us agree on another thing, too, that some days it’s very easy to acknowledge one’s spent too much time in France.
Anyway, in Napoleonic law it’s not so cut and dried that you’re innocent until proven guilty. So this being France, the circumstance, the sport, the dearth of drug testing (none at last year’s long course worlds as you know…), the multiple positive tests of previous world and Ironman winners, and the nature of the sport makes me say it went away too easily. I am glad there is further investigation.
Drug creep in any sport is disheartening. What it does is give those who want to live, train and race clean a false sense of what is achievable. When they eventually do break down and find out later that SoMeone else was able to hammer themselves in the same way but didn’t break down because they were on drugs – that is disheartening.
Drugs do not add to the lexicon of human performance – they rob us of the ability to decide what is truly achievable. For that reason, I couldn’t care less what happens to the health of someone who chooses to take drugs for performance-enhancing reasons.
My concern lies with all the people who have been duped into reaching for a level of performance that they believed was inspired by the human spirit, not fueled by banned substances.
Any professional living off the sport as Marceau and others have managed to do should distance themselves as far as possible from anything associated with banned substances. Or alternatively, go ahead and take them to their heart’s content but end their career at that point. He’s had plenty of time to learn how to be professional – this was amateurish at best.
There is no “EPO” in “triathlon”. Just like there’s no “I” in “team”.
I know nice guys that have doped. I know a$$holes that have doped. Personality has not much to do with the will to win at whatever cost.
To stay relatively sane and sharp, my standard assumtion is that everyone is doping but me. Even Mom.
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As François said, Marceau switched from racing for France to racing for Switzerland because he disagreed with the French federation and thought it would be easier (and he could do it more his way) to qualify for Athens.
This switch happened WAY BEFORE this EPO thing so it is definitely not a result of it. Your claims on this are wrong.
As to whether Marceau is doped or not, your guess is as good as mine (and anybody’s) and it would be true for any other Triathlete in this world. WE DON’T KNOW UNTIL WE KNOW, and even when we know, we’re not sure we know. That is the main problem with doping.
There are drugs in all sports, however, in the U.S. eyes are closed to this fact. The UCI does a thorough job of investigating and enforcing sanctions on those that are caught. It also seems that Police in these other countries have a little more leeway to investigate and go after those involved with doping.
What would happen if the NFL or any other pro organization began to *truly *test for and investigate the use of banned substances?
This is why you hear so much more about doping in cycling than virtually any other sport.
I have no doubt that there is much doping occurring in triathlon as well. We all have to admit that we enjoy watching the times fall in iron distance events and would love to see somebody break the eight hour mark in Hawaii. But is this possible without doping?
I came to cycling and triathlon from a background in competitive bodybuilding and powerlifting…fast twitch to slow twitch. You talk about drug infested sports, even at the local level. When professional bodybuilding began a solid testing program, the athletes, er, I mean performers became much less than the freaks they use to be. People stopped going to watch the contests and stopped using the same supplements that these guys were paid to endorse…even though they had never used the product. In the end a lot of money was being lost by all involved and therefore the drug testing stopped. The bodybuilders today are freakier than ever and the money is back.
I never have and never will use doping to make me better, and I don’t support those who do…or do I inadvertently by buying or using a certain product?
There is a lot of money involved with doping and those that are creating the drugs are a good step ahead of those who are trying to catch them.
I am glad to be involved in cycling now where athletes are questioned and investigated and where the seriousness of doping is realized and people are trying to do something about it.
By the way, is it just coincidence that I change from one sport where you shave your legs to another in which you do the same?
Then he couldnt be in the “cool guy/pro athlete club anymore”. It seems like all these athletes that decry drugs in sport because they are “clean”, always seem to “know who is on drugs” but will not name names. I wonder if the offender was a triathlete and not a cyclist and Marceau had to compete directly against him if he would blow the whistle? Didn’t Van Lierde claim his cycling training partner was Frank VandenBrouke? How many times has that guy been busted? He is the guy who actually once claimed the drugs were for his dog? Did Luc just assume it was O.K. because “he’s not in my sport”
I guess the moral is: if you are a Pro Triathlete, just hang around doper cyclists because your “sport is clean” and those guys are more fun. I once had a professor who would always book his seats in the smoking section of the plane even though he was a non-smoker. His reasoning was that smoker were just more interesting people. Maybe EPO works the same way?
maybe he did a mistake by associating with guys who use drugs. Still looking for their names on his site.
However, he made several public comments, apologies etc…despite not being charged for anything…
How many pros do you know put all their tests (including hormonal results that trace back much earlier than urine testing) on their website:
Comments in french: “since the parcel story, I keep absolutely everything and share it with you. I have nothing to hide. Those who are interested can follow the report of my medical exams.”
the guy was an elite 2 bike rider. Forgot his name (could be one the two names mentioned in the first post, but I am not sure). Marceau said he didn’t know the guy was on drug, which I believe. When I rode in France, some guys were using drugs and did it openly, others were secret. I discovered one guy was on the juice and it really surprised me. The guy didn’t send the EPO to Olivier Marceau, he was staying with Marceau at the time and had it shipped to his place (or post office, can’t remember)
“How many pros do you know put all their tests (including hormonal results that trace back much earlier than urine testing) on their website”
hey, just asking who the guy was. one thing we find out when we enter any sphere in which there are egos and money involved: secrecy is a lot more prevalent than transparency. just looking for a little sunshine, that’s all.
I wasn’t attacking your remarks at all…I know they are genuine questions. sorry don’t have the answer.
just answered to some other remarks as well on the same post.
sorry for the confusion
