| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Raimondas Rumšas | ||
| Born | January 14, 1972 Šilutė, Lithuania |
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| Team information | |||
| Current team | Retired | ||
| Discipline | Road | ||
| Role | Rider | ||
| Professional team(s) | |||
| 1996–1999 2000–2001 2002–2003 2004 |
Mróz Fassa Bortolo Lampre-Farnese Vini Acqua & Sapone |
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| Major wins | |||
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| Infobox last updated on April 21, 2009 |
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Raimondas Rumšas (born 14 January 1972 in Šilutė, Lithuania) is a retired professional road bicycle racer. He came third in the 2002 Tour de France but was implicated in a doping scandal.
On the day of Rumšas' third place finish in the 2002 Tour de France, police discovered corticoids, erythropoietin, testosterone, growth hormones and anabolic steroids in the car of his wife, Edita Rumšienė.[1] She was jailed for several months before being released, despite her claim that the drugs were for her mother-in-law.
In May 2003 Rumšas tested positive for the banned endurance enhancer erythropoietin (EPO).[2] He had just finished the 2003 Giro d'Italia, where he ranked sixth. Rumšas received a one-year ban. He briefly returned to cycling in 2004 with Acqua & Sapone team for the Gran Premio Città di Camaiore.[3]
In June 2005, Rumšas was arrested before his trial by the Bonneville court.[4] In January 2006, he and his wife received a four-month suspended prison sentences for the import of prohibited doping substances. Polish doctor Krzysztof Ficek was handed a 12-month suspended sentence for prescribing the drugs.[4]