Austria buoyed by recent wins, burdened by Turin scandal (Feature)

By Albert Otti Jan 27, 2010, 5:04 GMT

Vienna - Four years after the doping scandal at the Turin Winter Olympics, Austria has overhauled its anti-doping system and is working hard on a clean image for the Vancouver Games.

Austrians have dominated alpine skiing and ski-jumping this season, and have shown strong performances in biathlon. But they face a challenge to top the record 23 medals in 2006, nine of them gold.

The Turin scandal really started 2002 in Salt Lake City, when blood-transfusion equipment was found in the quarters of the Austrian cross-country team, headed by Walter Mayer.

Mayer's presence in Turin, in spite of a ban by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), set off a police raid among Austrian Nordic skiers, resulting again in the seizure of evidence that pointed to blood doping.

The national ski federation went into denial mode at first, with ski federation chief Peter Schroecksnadel declaring that 'Austria is too small a country for good doping.'

But soon the realization set in that there was a need to raise awareness and get to the bottom of the allegations, said Matthias Bogner, the secretary general of the Austrian Olympic Committee.

'One could see that there were deficits in this area,' he told German Press Agency dpa.

The government created an anti-doping agency and introduced prison sentences for those who deal with banned substances and for professional athletes who use them.

'We are well-armed compared to other European participants' at the Olympics, Bogner said.

The sports ministry has launched a campaign with advertisements showing smartly-dressed top athletes, 'not least because of the many negative headlines' caused by the scandal, Defence and Sports Minister Norbert Darabos said.

In the meantime, six members of the Olympic cross-country and biathlon teams received bans from the IOC, which also made the Austrian national committee pay a fine of 1 million dollars.

But the decimated Nordic teams have recovered, and the biathlon squad led by Simon Eder and Christoph Sumann are strong medal contenders at Whistler Olympic Park.

Austria's ski-jumpers, led by 20-year-old Gregor Schlierenzauer, have dominated their sport as a group this season, but are facing stiff competition from athletes such as Switzerland's Simon Ammann and Finland's Janne Ahonen.

The women's alpine team has no one to match US racer Lindsey Vonn in the super-g and downhill events, as Michaela Dorfmeister has retired after winning these two disciplines in Turin.

But Kathrin Zettel and Marlies Schild stand a chance to win medals in the slalom and giant slalom events at Whistler. Men's contenders are two-time 2006 champion Benjamin Raich, as well as Michael Walchhofer and Reinfried Herbst, who also medalled in Turin.

While Austria is trying to wipe the slate clean for Vancouver, some smudges will take longer to erase.

Prosecutors are expected to decide in the coming months on possible charges against Mayer, against disgraced cross-country skier Christian Hoffmann, as well as former cyclist Bernhard Kohl, his alleged collaborator in running a blood doping business.

And in March, senior Austrian skiing officials and Nordic athletes are set to continue their trial in Italy on doping charges based on events in Turin.