Italian police in early morning drugs raid on Russian biathletes' hotel

Italian police carried out an early-morning anti-doping raid Saturday on the Russian team's hotel at the biathlon world championships, a police spokesperson confirmed to AFP. Two Russians were targeted, biathlete Alexander Loginov, who won 10 kilometre sprint gold on February 15, and his personal coach Alexander Kasperovich, the head of Russia's biathlon federation Vladimir Drachev told Russian news agencies. "Today police came to the hotel at 5:50 am... The police visit was on the request of a member of the IBU," Drachev told Interfax news agency, referring to the International Biathlon Union. Drachev said the search was "linked to the fact that...Kasperovich was using another person's accreditation". He said he had gone to a police station with Kasperovich. Loginov served a two-year ban for using the banned blood booster EPO from November 2014 to November 2016. "This could be a repeat case. They (the police) searched his things for one and half hours and confiscated his devices," Drachev said. An Italian police spokesperson told AFP the raid had been requested by "prosecutors in Bolzano". - Confiscated computer - "The alleged offence comes under article 586 bis of the penal code (use or administration of doping products)," the spokesperson said. "Two people are concerned, both of them are Russian nationals, an athlete and his coach." Loginov has already won gold in the sprint and bronze in the pursuit, and is due to compete in Saturday's relay. Loginov told Match TV channel that police woke him and fellow biathlete Evgeniy Garanichev by bursting into their room. "They were only interested in my things," Loginov said, confirming that the search had been requested by the IBU and saying that he had not been charged with anything. Loginov could be unable to compete Saturday, the head trainer for the male biathletes, Sergei Belozerov told TASS news agency. "I'm worried the police, after confiscating his computer and phone, could say before lunch that they need further information and pull him out," Belozerov said, while adding that Garanichev will compete. Russia's sports ministry announced that it had been informed of the search. It said the sports minister Oleg Matytsin sent an urgent request to the Russian biathlon federation for information on the raid. "The Russian sports ministry intends to continue working actively to defend the rights of clean athletes, at the same time supporting the most strict measures in proven cases of breaches of ant-doping rules," the statement said. The Russian Olympic Committee in a statement expressed "extreme concern at the events". Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Russian television that diplomats in Italy and the Russian foreign ministry were trying to "clarify this situation". "I can assure you that diplomats are working on this question and we hope that it will be possible to resolve it shortly," she said. The Russian Embassy in Rome said on Twitter that it had "contacted the Italian foreign ministry and the prime minister's office and demanded explanations." Earlier the Russian consulate in Milan was checking the media reports and contacting police, and had also sent a consulate staff member to help the athletes. Russia has been at the centre of a long running doping scandal that began with the 2015 revelation of long-term institutional doping involving senior Russian officials, secret agents and trafficked urine vials. In December, the World Anti-Doping Agency imposed a fresh four-year ban covering this year's Tokyo Olympics. Russia disputed the suspension, with the case due to be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Loginov, competing at the world championships this week, was woken by police bursting into his room