Petacchi cleared of Salbutamol charge, but...

VeloNews |Petacchi cleared of Salbutamol charge

Milram's supersprinter Alessandro Petacchi was cleared yesterday by the Italian Cycling Federation after testing well above the threshold value for the asthma medication salbutamol at the Giro d'Italia.

Petacchi is one of many cyclists who carry “therapeutic use exemptions,” documents provided by doctors that allow them to use substances that are generally off-limits to treat specific ailments.

The Italian Olympic Committee recommended a 12-month suspension, but the disciplinary committee of the national federation said Petacchi could return to racing immediately.

Cyclingnews reports Petacchi might not want to book any race travel just yet, as the UCI may begin an appeal “within days.”

"The UCI will ask for the file and we will then study it once we receive it," said UCI chief Pat McQuaid."We don't know all the details of the Italian federation's decision, but we will be making a request for the file in the next 24 hours."

"It is a possibilty that we appeal," he added.