• Cycling

Astana future under threat after failed drugs tests

Astana's Kazakh rider Ilya Davidenok has been provisionally suspended © Getty Images

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The Astana team of Tour de France winner Vicenzo Nibali face a review of their licence after three riders failed drugs tests.

The UCI has asked its licence commission to look into the management and anti-doping policies of the team after brothers Maxim and Valentin Iglinskiy, and llya Davidenok tested positive for banned substances.

The Kazakhstan-based team have already been granted a licence for 2015, but could lose it or have conditions attached after the Iglinskiy brothers tested positive for EPO while llya Davidenok failed a test for anabolic steroids.

Davidenok, who is a trainee rider with the team, was this week notified of an 'adverse analytical finding for anabolic androgenic steroids' from a test taken at the Tour de l'Avenir in late August. The Kazakh rider has the right to request analysis of his 'B' sample but has been provisionally suspended.

Astana's 2014 season was highlighted by Vincenzo Nibali winning the Tour de France and there has been no suggestion of wrongdoing on his part, who in an interview with newspaper la Repubblica this summer described doping as "abhorrent".

However, the series of cases in quick succession has raised concerns about the team's anti-doping practices, which will now come under review.

A UCI statement said: "The licence commission is the competent body for issuing, reviewing, withdrawing and attaching conditions to UCI WorldTour licences and ensuring that licence-holders continuously comply with the terms of the licence.

"As per the UCI regulations, it is expected that the team will appear before the licence commission within the next month for an assessment of the team's level of compliance with the ethical criteria so that the appropriate measures can be then taken.

"It will be for the licence commission to determine whether and to what extent the team and/or its management is responsible for recent events. The UCI will not comment further at this stage."

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