In August 2014, UCI revealed that Matteo Rabottini, from MPCC member Neri Sottoli, had been tested positive. The movement “deplored that they were not informed by the team spontaneously, following the positive control of its rider, and were provided no acceptable explanation at the general meeting, during which the team [did] not show up.”
On 3 December 2014, the board of MPCC met Serge Parsani, sporting director of the team, and who was representing its manager Angelo Citracca. The membership of the team for the coming season depended on these new explanations. At the end of the board meeting it was decided to suspend team Neri Sottoli’s MPCC membership with immediate effect, until the October 2015 general meeting. The team, since renamed Southeast, continued to be considered a member of MPCC until that decision was made in this general meeting.
On 9 June 2015, UCI revealed that Ramon Carretero had been tested positive for EPO. The Panamanian rider is also part of Team Southeast which followed Neri Sottoli. Those two positive tests occurred over a less than twelve month period, so MPCC signalled Team Southeast that, under the rules of the movement, it had to suspend itself between June 13 and 20 of this year.
In response to MPCC’s self-suspension request, Team Southeast stated that it has no longer considered itself as a member of the movement since January 2015 and hasn’t felt concerned by the self-suspension. Contacted several times since the beginning of the year, Team Southeast’s executives never indicated to MPCC their wish to remain member of the movement or not.
Given the facts outlined and in accordance with the rules governing the organization, MPCC therefore opens exclusion process against this team.