Spanish team Xacobeo-Galicia released its team doctor, Alberto Beltrán. The team indicated that the drastic measure was preventative, following the doping scandal around the Portuguese Liberty Seguros team.
Beltrán used to work for Liberty Seguros but replaced Xacobeo’s team doctor, José Manuel Rodríguez at the first rest day of this year’s Vuelta a España.
The new race director for the Vuelta, Javier Guillén, was in touch with the Spanish team. “We made our concerns clear to Xacobeo, ” said Guillén to Radio Galega. “It appears the positives may have been related to Beltrán, but we have to wait for the dates.”
Xacobeo’s director Alvaro Pino explained that the team moved quickly. “Doctor Beltrán is already gone from us. In light of the events in Portugal, the management canceled his contracts.”
A statement released by the team also clarified the practice of changing team doctors mid-race. “This is very common in professional cycling,” the press release read. The move was communicated to the International Cycling Federation (UCI) and there was no veto by the Vuelta organizers.