VIENNA (AP) — Former Olympic cross-country ski champion Christian Hoffmann of Austria has been given a six-year ban for blood doping.
The disciplinary committee of Austria’s anti-doping agency said Tuesday it found Hoffmann guilty of having his blood taken for doping purposes at a Vienna lab and possessing a centrifuge for blood enrichment.
The 36-year-old Hoffmann retired from the sport in 2009. He has always denied any wrongdoing and has never tested positive. prosecutors in Austria have been investigating possible blood doping by him and other athletes since early 2009.
Hoffmann’s lawyer, Hans-Moritz Pott, announced plans to fight the ban in a civil court.
