Kohl likely to be sacked by Silence Lotto

The Silence Lotto team is expected to sack Bernhard Kohl after he tested positive for the new generation of the banned blood booster EPO, at the Tour de France, CERA.

The positive sample finding was confirmed by France's national anti-doping agency (AFLD).

From Espnstar.com:

Kohl finished third and also won the Polka Dot jersey as the best climber on this year's Tour.

The Austrian, who rode for Gerolsteiner this season, had signed a contract with Silence Lotto which was due to run until 2011.

But a statement from his new team read: "Around 1900 (on Monday) the press told us that Bernhard Kohl has been controlled positively for the use of CERA.

"We have immediately checked this information with the Gerolsteiner's manager, who has confirmed it.

"If this information is confirmed by the official authorities, the team management will start the legal steps in view of breaking immediately our future collaboration with Kohl."

Italians Riccardo Ricco and Leonardo Piepoli, plus Germany's Stefan Schumacher, have already tested positive for CERA.

Kohl's sample was found to include CERA before and during the Tour after re-tests at a laboratory in Chatenay-Malabry.