Home > News

Vini Zabù withdraws from the Giro d’Italia after another doping case, Androni Giocattoli to replace it

Vini Zabù has had seven doping positives since 2013

Photo by: Sirotti
April 15, 2021
Share on SMS

Two months ago the organizers of the the 104th Giro d’Italia revealed its wildcard team invitations and some were disappointed in the omission of Italian ProTeam Androni Giocattoli after three consecutive Giros. However, on Thursday, another Italian ProTeam, Vini Zabù, withdrew from the race following yet another doping scandal and Androni Giocattoli Sidermec will answer the call after all.

Soon after Vini’s withdrawal, the Giro brought Androni Giocattoli Sidermec into the fold.

Vini Zabù’s latest positive came from Matteo De Bonis for EPO, prompting his team to self-suspend itself from competition to carry out an internal investigation. Last season at the Giro Matteo Spreafico was caught with banned substance Ostarine in his system. When the team was called Wilier-Southeast in 2016, Samuele Conti tested positive for GHRP-2. Panamanian Ramón Carretero was caught using EPO the year before that and Matteo Rabottini, the 2012 Giro King of the Mountains, had an EPO positive in 2014.

De Bonis’s positive spurred the health and safety wing of the Carabinieri, Italy’s national police, into raiding the homes of most of the riders, along with those of the team general manager and senior directeur sportif. The team’s headquarters and warehouse were also searched.

Androni Giocattoli Sidermec will join Alpecin-Fenix, the “Barnies” of Bardiani-CSF-Faizanè and the Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso-run EOLO-Kometa from Spain as the wildcard teams.

Androni Giocattoli general manager Gianni Savio will feel somewhat redeemed in finally getting chosen, as his team was the top Italian side in the 2020 Pro Series and claimed a stage in the 2019 Giro via Fausto Masnada.

Fausto Masnada wins the sixth stage of the 2019 Giro.

The Giro d’Italia gets underway on May 8 in Turin.