ROME - The Italian Olympic Committee has banned an entire family for doping.
CONI's anti-doping tribunal handed down a five-year ban to cyclist Lorenzo Bernucci, who was suspended by his Lampre team after a police raid in April.
His wife, Valentina Borgioli, mother Antonella Rossi and father-in-law Fabrizio Borgioli, got four years while his brother Alessio Bernucci got a three-year ban after being linked to blood doping by a Padua prosecutor, CONI said in a statement. The bans prevent the family members from involvement in any sports events in Italy.
The family also must pay CONI 540,000 euros (C$722,630) in fees, the statement said.
Bernucci's former teammate with Lampre, Alessandro Petacchi, is also being investigated after the April raids at both riders' houses. Both maintain their innocence.
Neither Petacchi nor Bernucci tested positive; the investigation involved wiretaps and testimony.
Bernucci, who is mainly a support rider, tested positive for a non-amphetamine appetite suppressant in 2007 and was fired by the T-Mobile team.
