Meirhaeghe racing at Fort William earlier this year

Doping scandals are common as muck on the road, but with one or two notable exceptions they’ve been few and far between on the MTB circuit. But when one comes along it’s a biggie – Belgian press agency Belga reports that World XC Champion Filip Meirhaeghe has dropped out of competitive cycling following a positive test for EPO at one of the Canadian rounds of the UCI World Cup.

As far as we can gather from our efforts at translating the French news item, Meirhaeghe intends to retire immediately rather than face a ban. As well as losing the chance to defend his World Champion title, Meirhaeghe was one of Belgium’s best chances for an Olympic Gold at Athens.

We’re waiting for an official statement from Meirhaeghe and sponsors Specialized. In the meantime, there’s more at www.cyclingnews.com.