Cycling: Death of Linas Rumsas: Six arrests for doping in Italy

Investigations into the death of Linas Rumsas, Lithuanian amateur cyclist and son of the convicted doping offender Raimondas Rumsas, have led to the arrest of one of the largest amateur cycling teams in Italy.

According to the investigating public prosecutor’s office in the Tuscan city of Lucca on Thursday, 17 people have been investigated. Six people were arrested, including the owner of the team, a former sports director and a pharmacist.

The young athletes of the Altopack Eppela racing team are said to have been urged by the team boss to take doping substances, including epo and growth hormones. Linas Rumsas was on the 2. May 2017 at the age of 21 years deceased. As the public prosecutor’s office suspects, this was due to the use of banned doping substances.

The apartment of the Rumsas family near Lucca was searched shortly afterwards. Searches were also carried out in the team boss’s apartment. Forbidden substances were confiscated.

In January, the Italian Anti-Doping Court had granted Linas Rumsas’ brother Raimondas Rumsas junior (23) for four years until 22 January 2008 because of doping. October 2021 closed. He was in training control on the 7th. September 2017, the intake of the growth hormone GHRP-6 has been demonstrated.

Raimonda’s father Raimondas Rumsas had been tested at the 2003 Giro d’ Italia positive for the blood doping agent Epo and had been banned for one year. In 2002 he had been third overall of the Tour de France. During the tour of France, his wife Edita was caught and arrested at a border check in Italy with considerable amounts of epo, anabolic steroids and stimulants in her car.