Ferrari Trial Ends (for now)
So the Trial of doctor Ferrari heads to appeal. Huge shocker there. He will serve no jail time and is acquitted of distributing doping products, but having his license suspended for malpractice is as close as it gets to jail for a Doc.
The most predictable part about the verdict is that neither side are satisfied. It reminds me of a split decision title fight. Ferrari knows he did well, being cleared of the most serious charge of distribution of doping products, but he’s pissed at getting hit with malpractice (if he’s innocent, he should be). His appeal outcome will tell us our take.
In the other corner stands Filippo Simeoni, who is saying that the verdict proves that his statements were true. If he feels it proves all or some of his statements correct he didn’t say.
And caught in the middle of the media crunch is Lance Armstrong. We find it interesting that his name can’t seem to make it out of the first paragraph of most stories along with the word “Sentenced”, but there’s no mention of the fact that he’s actually NOT a formal part of the investigation, findings or charges. We take a stab at being journalists here at Pez too, so no point in tossing him into our story just as a headline grab…
For his part, Lance has officially suspended his association with Ferrari, and was quoted in VeloNews saying: “…I have always said that I have zero-tolerance for anyone convicted of using or facilitating the use of performance-enhancing drugs. As a result of today’s developments, the USPS team and I have suspended our professional affiliation with Dr. Ferrari as we await the release of the full verdict, which will contain Judge Maurizio Passerini’s reasoning.”
This thing isn’t over, and it will be interesting to see if the appeal gets Ferrari acquitted on the lesser charge of malpractice as he was on distribution. If so, let’s hope we get another quote from Simeoni, and that the media don’t forget to include Lance’s name in the same paragraph as “Cleared”.
Let’s also hope for a ruling on Ferrari’s future from the UCI, but not till after the appeal. If he’s run the legal process to conclusion and still has improper handling of riders tagged to his actions, let’s hope for banishment from the sport. One bad rider can hurt himself. One bad doctor can hurt hundreds, along with the sport itself.
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