Festina affair

The Festina affair was a doping scandal during the Tour de France 1998.

Up to this time biggest doping scandal in sports history rocked the most important cycling race in the world, having large amounts of illicit substances were found in Willy Voet, a supervisor of the Festina cycling team with favorites Richard Virenque and Alex Zülle. It was mainly to erythropoietin (EPO ), a hormone that regulates erythropoiesis, ie the formation of new erythrocytes ( red blood cells) and stimulates. In this way it is possible to transport relatively large amounts of oxygen in the blood.

Willy Voet, who had led the doping accurately book, unpacked over the prosecution and in 1999 published his tell-all book " Massacre à la chaine ", which describes 30 years doping practice.

The prosecution conducted several raids in the team hotel. The investigation revealed that at Festina a nationwide doping had been practiced. This discovery also underlined the ineffectiveness of that doping controls: None of the Festina riders had tested positive. The team was excluded after the seventh stage of the Tour de France. Also TVM - Farm Frites were excluded. The Spanish teams withdrew in protest against the methods of investigation by the French authorities of the tour.

After initial denials Zülle admitted taking banned agent and has been banned for six months. Virenque, however, implored his innocence long time until he finally admitted in court in 2000 also the consumption of prohibited means and was then blocked for half a year. Laurent Dufaux has been banned seven months, Christophe Moreau and Didier Rous five months. Laurent Brochard also confessed to EPO doping and was banned by the UCI.

The 1998 Tour de France, which was a long time before the crash, was eventually won by Marco Pantani, which was then ruled a year later even due to an increased hematocrit from the Giro d' Italia.