from the AP…
CESENA, Italy (AP)—The Gerolsteiner team suspended Andrea Moletta and pulled the Italian rider out of the Giro d’Italia because of alleged doping.
Moletta, who was in 77th place halfway through the three-week Giro, did not start Wednesday’s stage.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reported Thursday that Italian police searched a car driven by Moletta’s father in which they allegedly found a refrigerator with suspected doping products as well as syringes hidden inside tubes of toothpaste.
Police said the car was headed to the Giro and the search was part of a wider investigation into doping in gyms in the city of Padua in northeastern Italy.
Gerolsteiner general manager Hans-Michael Holczer made the decision to suspend the 29-year-old Moletta, Gazzetta said.
The Giro d’Italia continued Thursday with a 107-mile flat leg from Forli to Carpi.
