Valentin Iglinskiy

News is coming in that Valentin Iglinskiy and his brother Maxim were stopped for speeding by French police on Tuesday night. Tests showed the 27-year-old Team Astana rider Valentin to be over the legal driving limit for alcohol and positive for cocaine (according to French RTL radio). Maxim, who rode in this year's Tour de France which finished on Sunday, was arrested and taken into police custody, says French website Cyclism'Actu.

The Kazakh-born brothers, who now live in Monaco, are said to have been travelling in a Volkswagen Golf at 203kmph in a 110kmph limit on the A8 motorway.

Cyclism'Actu also claims that the Iglinskiys was returning home from a party at the home of Alexandre Vinokourov, the Astana rider who was banned from professional cycling in 2007 after failing an anti-doping test at the Tour de France. Vinokourov announced his retirement at the time, but later returned to the sport and competed alongside Maxim in the Tour this year until being forced to abandon following a crash in Stage 9. He announced his second retirement shortly afterwards.

Maxim Iglinskiy

According to Nice Matin, Valentin paid a fine of 1800 euros and is likely to be banned from driving in France.


More news if we can get it!