May 26, 2004 (Montreal, QC) – Star Canadian cyclist Genevieve Jeanson could be facing a suspension after failing to turn up for an April 21 drug test after a competition in Belgium.
According to reports, it appears Jeanson may have missed the test because of an oversight.
The cyclist says she had a blood and urine test before the race, according to La Presse.
“I’m not saying that’s the reason but subconsciously I no doubt told myself that I had already had all the necessary tests for the day,” Jeanson was quoted in the paper’s Wednesday edition.

La Presse says, according to international cycling rules, Jeanson risks a one- to six-month suspension that could prevent her from participating in the Olympic Games in Athens in August and the world championships this fall.

A publicist who works with Jeanson’s Rona team confirmed the La Presse report.
The paper said the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency has given the cyclist until June 4 to explain again what happened. She should find out her fate between June 5 and 10.

The Montreal-based World Anti-Doping Agency referred queries to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which referred calls to the International Cycling Federation, the sport’s world governing body known as UCI.

The Associated Press reported that UCI referred all queries on the matter to its spokesman at the world track cycling championships in Melbourne, Australia. The spokesman was not immediately available and UCI declined further comment.

The U.S. agency is involved because Jeanson is licensed by USA Cycling. In Canada, cyclists have to be licensed by their provincial governing body but Quebec officials refused to issue the licence for Jeanson because they wanted more answers from her in the wake of being excluded from the world cycling championships last year in Hamilton for having an elevated red blood cell count.

“Genevieve felt that she had answered all the questions that were necessary and still wasn’t getting any movement with the Quebec Cycling Association and as such she began to explore other opportunities for her to obtain a licence for this season,” Sean O’Donnell, high performance co-ordinator with the Canadian Cycling Association, explained Wednesday. “She went and contacted USA Cycling and they, well within their power, issued her a licence for this year.'”

O’Donnell refused to comment further on the matter.

Jeanson, ranked 16th in the world, said she has been on the anti-doping testing list since being tossed out of the world road cycling championships in Hamilton on Oct. 11 when blood samples taken hours before the women’s road race showed a red blood cell count above the limit allowed by the International Cycling Union.

A urine sample taken the same day from Jeanson was flown to a lab in Lausanne, Switzerland, to be tested for EPO, or erythropoetin. Those tests showed no trace of a performance-enhancing substance.

In its pure form, EPO is a hormone produced by the kidneys when oxygen supply is low. Synthetic EPO was developed by drug companies to help patients experiencing kidney failure or taking chemotherapy but some cheaters among world-class athletes have used it as a stamina booster.

Until the U.S. Anti-Doping ruling, Jeanson will continue her bid to qualify for the Athens Games. She will need to finish in the top eight in a race this Saturday in Montreal.
Jeanson finished 30th in the Belgian competition that preceded the drug test.