June 19, 2006 — According to a recent AP report France’s sports minister, Jean-Francois Lamour, recently asked his Spanish counterpart, Jaime Lissavetzky, to release the names of the athletes implicated in Spain’s doping investigation prior to the start of the Tour de France beginning on July 1.

Operation “Puerto”, on-going since February 2006, led Spanish police to seize steroids, hormones, nearly 100 bags of frozen blood and lists naming more than 100 top-level athletes who allegedly used the services of doctors offering doping procedures, but Spanish authorities have not released the names.

The Spanish authorities and Tour organizers are working together to find solutions and prevent those suspected of doping from benefiting at the Tour.

The report said Lamour supported the Tour’s recent decision to withdraw its invitation to the Spanish cycling team, Comunidad Valenciana, to compete in this year’s Tour, after its deputy director, Jose Ignacio Labarta, was arrested as a result of the Spanish investigation. Lamour added that cycling needs to restore the “balance between performance and ethics.”