AW52-FC Porto resumes training this Thursday, on the initiative of its manager and main sponsor, Adriano Quintanilha, who, believing in the innocence of cyclists in ‘Operação Prova Limpa’, launched on the 24th by the Judiciary Police and ADoP, decided to gather the team in a hotel in Paredes, to restart the preparation.
«I believe in the word of the cyclists when they tell me they are clean and not to be afraid, because the blood and urine tests carried out on Sunday will be negative. If any prohibited substance was seized in their homes or hotel rooms, cyclists will have to answer. But from what they say, I trust them, and that’s why I made the decision to bring them together. We are talking only about cyclists. I will not comment on Nuno Ribeiro and José Rodrigues, as I only know what the newspapers, radios and televisions say», Quintanilha explained to A BOLA, also committed to finding a sports director to replace them.
“I am in contact with three people qualified to perform the functions, to choose one of them. The situation is not easy, but we have to face the problems and solve them. If cyclists claim to be innocent, we have to get back to normality and put things right. The team is not suspended by the federation or the UCI and we can compete, as long as the situation of the sporting director is regularized, which will happen in the short term. The return to training together will also serve to bring normality to the W52-FC Porto working group», he added.
According to A BOLA, in addition to the sports director, Nuno Ribeiro, and the deputy, José Rodrigues, 10 cyclists were accused, seven of which competed in the Grand Prix O Jogo.
The rest are part of the group made up of Amaro Antunes, Ricardo Mestre, Samuel Caldeira and Jorge Magalhães, as Guilherme Mota is no longer part of the team.
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