Anti-doping agency welcomes blood profiling

MONTREAL — The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has welcomed the suspension of Italian cyclist Francesco De Bonis based on the evidence of blood profile results. WADA commended the International Cycling Union for its use of the biological passport project and encouraged other sports organizations to implement similar programs. WADA director general David Howman called the project a "powerful tool" to fight doping in sport and that it "makes prohibitive preparations harder to implement by those athletes who may take the risk to cheat." The Italian Olympic Committee on Thursday suspended De Bonis for two years, through June 2011, though he never failed a doping test. The Italian tribunal acted on information supplied by the UCI from blood samples. – AP