French authorities have verified that they have opened an initial investigation into possible doping allegations at the Bahrain Victorious group. The announcement follows the news that the Bahrain Victorious team hotel was robbed and vehicles browsed by cops on Wednesday night at the Tour de France in Pau.A statement from the Marseille district attorneys workplace stated the examination was opened on July 3 into the possible “acquisition, transportation, possession and importing of a prohibited compound or technique for use by an athlete without justification by members of Team Bahrain Victorious, presently in action at the 2021 Tour de France. Cops verified that as part of the investigation, with approval from a judge, they carried out a search of the hotel spaces occupied by the members of the group in the residential area of Pau.

French authorities have actually verified that they have opened an initial examination into possible doping claims at the Bahrain Victorious team. The announcement follows the news that the Bahrain Victorious group hotel was robbed and cars browsed by authorities on Wednesday night at the Tour de France in Pau.A declaration from the Marseille district attorneys workplace said the investigation was opened on July 3 into the possible “acquisition, transportation, belongings and importing of a restricted compound or technique for use by an athlete without validation by members of Team Bahrain Victorious, currently in action at the 2021 Tour de France.”The investigation is being performed by the Office Central de Lutte contre les Atteintes à lEnvironnement et la Santé Publique (OCLAESP), responsible for public health based in Marseille, where the examination was officially opened by a public prosecutor. Police verified that as part of the examination, with approval from a judge, they carried out a search of the hotel spaces inhabited by the members of the team in the suburban area of Pau. Cyclingnews comprehends around 50 officers were involved.”The initial examination is continuing to figure out the truth or not of the offenses that validated its initiation,” the statement reads.”The existence of this investigation and the operations carried out do not in any way anticipate the presence of criminal offenses. Anybody suspected or prosecuted is presumed innocent until proven guilty.”On Thursday morning Cyclingnews broke the news that the Bahrain Victorious group hotel had been raided by the French authorities with lots of officers on the scene. According to Reuters the raid lasted till 2 a.m. however the team dismissed the story.”Nothing special, we have a see from the police, they request for riders training files, they examine bus and thats it,” team employer Milan Erzen told Cyclingnews. “They interrupt riders for one hour and at the end, they said thank you. They didnt tell us whats the factor of go to, however we will found this out today through attorneys.”Bahrain Victorious verified to Cyclingnews they would continue in the Tour de France and line-up in Pau for the final mountain stage 18 to Luz Ardiden.”Of course, why not? We will safeguard our positions,” they said.More to follow …