Toon Aerts maintains innocence over doping control positive
Belgian cross rider's A-sample positive for breast cancer treatment drug.
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Toon Aerts (Baloise Trek Lions) maintains his innocence after an out-of-competition doping control sample from January 19 was found to contain a banned substance.
“I will do everything I can to prove my innocence and clear my name,” Aerts said in a statement.
According to Sporza, the breast cancer drug Letrozole turned up in his submitted “A” sample.
“I was notified that an abnormal result was found in my urine sample taken during an out-of-competition check at my home on January 19. I am currently in the dark as to how this could have happened. The product Letrozole Metabolite was found in my urine sample. A product I had never heard of until yesterday and I don’t know how it got into my body.”
The ace Belgian ‘cross rider gave a sample 10 days prior to the 2022 UCI world cyclocross championships in which he finished in sixth place.
Should Aerts’ “B” sample return a positive for the same substance, he stands to lose his placing from the Arkansas race, as well as a win in Lille, on February 6, his third-place from the Gavere Superprestige, and at top-10 in the Brussels University Cyclocross. He also stands to lose his X²O Badkamers Trofee series title.
“Anyone who knows me a little knows that I have been against any form of doping all my career and have always done everything I can to set an example as an athlete. I will therefore do everything I can to prove my innocence and clear my name. Pending the analysis of the B sample and further investigations, I will not comment,” he said.