The Royal Netherlands Cycling Union (KNWU) intentionally concealed a positive EPO test in 2011, an investigation by the Dutch website Wielerflits (opens in new tab) has revealed.

The athlete, whose name has not been revealed, was competing in an international race for the Netherlands, but tested positive for EPO in an out-of-competition test on May 4, 2011. The athlete immediately retired from racing, and Wielerfritz stated that he "was able to convince the KNWU not to make this public."

Wielerfritz spoke with the rider in question but did not disclose his name. The rider was reportedly going through a tough personal time at the time of the positive result and was subsequently banned for two years by the KNWU on May 31, 2011.

"Huib Kloosterhuis, the director of the KNWU, accepted my request that the positive test not be publicized due to a family situation. 'I stopped cycling right away, which made it possible.' According to Kloosterhuis, this was possible within the stipulations."

At the time, the rider indicated that lack of motivation was the reason for his retirement. Thorwald Veneberg, KNWU's technical director at the time, confirmed Ryder's explanation.

"This assessment was made by the director at the time," he told Wielerflits (open in new tab). 'He informed me about it at the time. It was a very difficult and sad time for all concerned."

"Ryder discussed this matter with the director in private. He took exception and decided not to disclose it due to personal circumstances and the fact that Ryder had stopped cycling.

"The KNWU is not obligated to publicize a rider as long as it is certain that the suspension will be carried out effectively and that the rider will not compete during the period of suspension. That certainty was.

The decision of the Kloosterhaus to keep the suspensions private was approved by the KNWU Disciplinary Committee; the current president of the KNWU, Marcel Wintels, did not respond when asked by Wielerfritz if he was aware of this matter.

National Federations and Anti-Doping Organizations are required by the WADA Code (14.1.2) to notify both the UCI and WADA of a positive test: "The Anti-Doping Organization with results management responsibility shall at the same time notify the Athlete or other persons, . shall also notify the Athlete's National Anti-Doping Organization, the International Federation, and WADA of the alleged anti-doping rule violation."

Anti-doping expert Douwe de Boer told Wielerflits that he was aware of one more private case involving the KNWU and drew attention to the WADA Code as well.

"I know of another doping case from that period from the KNWU that has not been made public," de Boer said. 'This has happened in other countries as well. In any case, it must be reported to the relevant international association (in this case the UCI) and WADA. It must also be possible to review the ruling."

At the time, it was unclear whether the case had been reported to the UCI or WADA, and while Veneberg said the process was customary, the relevant files "cannot be found immediately, perhaps because we switched to a different digital system or because the legal time limit to store them has expired."

UCSC stated.

The UCI told Wielerfritz that it would investigate whether notification had been given, the duration of the rider's punishment, including whether the rider raced anywhere outside the Netherlands during the suspension period.

Cycling-related highlights from today's Black Friday sale. Check out our guide to the best Black Friday bike sales, where you'll find everything related to cycling, including bikes, helmets, clothing, and more.

Today's Deal: USA

Today's Deal: UK