After testing positive for cannabis, gondolier Renato Busetto was suspended by the municipality of Venice for 13 months and canceled his second place in the historic Regatta of the City of the Doges, local newspapers report.
This is the first time in the history of the famous regatta that a participant has found positive for an anti-doping test.
A traditional competition
The competition takes place every September on the Grand Canal in Venice, where different types of boats compete, including two-oar “gondolini” - boats that are lighter and faster than traditional “gondolas” - on which the Busetto brothers competed.
Renato and Roberto Busetto, won second place in this sporting event on September 5th.
During the usual doping controls at the end of the competition, which are carried out only on the teams occupying the first and second place, one sample was found positive.
An "unfair" decision according to his lawyer
After a new examination of the blood and urine samples taken on September 5, the municipal commission responsible for deciding in these situations ordered the suspension for 13 months of Renato Busetto.
According to
Venezia Today
, a local newspaper, the second place will not be reallocated but will remain vacant.
For Busetto's lawyer, this is an “unfair” decision towards the brothers, who will be excluded from the next historic Regatta.
The modern regatta originated in 1841 when the municipality of Venice asked the Austrian authorities to allow the organization of an annual boat race along the Grand Canal to encourage gondoliers to practice.
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