On the heels of the Italian Olympic Committee naming previously cleared Alberto Contador and Alejandro Valverde as cyclists it wants to investigate for possible doping, Germany’s version of PBS, the public television station ARD, has named Michael Rasmussen and Denis Menchov and other cyclists from Rabobank as having used a Vienna-based lab known as Humanplasma.

Rasmuissen and Menchov, along with 30-50 other athletes, stand accused by the Germans TV station of blood-doping. (With a name like Humanplasma, steroids or human-growth hormone seem out the question, eh?)

Of course denials have been issued all around according to media reports.

Rasmussen, of course, was the rider booted from the Tour de France last year for lying to his team and doping officials about his whereabouts while missing doping control tests.

Menchov, a two-time Vuelta a Espana winner, has never before been implicated, nor have since retired Michael Boogerd and George Totschnig, the former who rode for Rabobank and the latter for Gerolsteiner, which is losing its sponsor after this season because of cycling’s doping issues.

Cyclingnews and velonews have coverage of the latest doping dustup.  And if you’re fluent in German, you can visit the Humanplasma website.

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