PARIS — British sprint star Mark Cavendish underwent successful shoulder surgery Monday, his Etixx-Quick Step team said. However, Etixx said the time required to recover from the operation meant the 30-year-old former world road race champion would not compete again this year. "Cavendish underwent surgery this morning on his left shoulder, to fix a partial tear of his left AC ligament suffered as consequence of the crash during the 6th stage of Aviva Tour of Britain. This was the opposite shoulder to the one damaged at Le Tour de France in 2014," said an Etixx statement. The operation was performed in Wilslow, near Manchester, England. "It has been a very difficult decision. However, after 10 days from the crash, I still had pain and I couldn't lift or pull much weight," said Cavendish. "I tried to ride my bike a few days ago on the road, but I could not put any power out by pulling on the handlebars. The surgery was necessary to avoid any problems in the near future. "I'm so disappointed to end the season like this." Another rider caught An International Cycling Union policy of re-testing stored doping samples has led to a third rider being provisionally suspended pending a disciplinary case. The UCI says mountain biker Blaza Klemencic of Slovenia tested positive for EPO in a sample given in March 2012. The 35-year-old Klemencic competed in women's mountain bike cross-country at the past two Olympics. Klemencic, a two-time world championship medalist in mountain bike marathon racing, is the third rider suspended in the past five weeks for samples given at least three years ago. Giampaolo Caruso of Italy and Russian Alexey Shmidtm, both road racers, also tested positive for EPO, a banned endurance-boosting hormone. In Caruso's case, the UCI said his sample had been "stored and was reanalyzed in light of new scientific developments." — Agencies
