Bosisio in happier times. | Graham Watson file photo

Former LPR rider Gabriele Bosisio was hit with a two-year suspension by the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) on Wednesday after testing positive for EPO last fall.

The 29-year-old former teammate of Danilo Di Luca, who is also serving a doping ban, tested positive in a surprise out-of-competition test last September.

Bosisio’s suspension will expire on October 5, 2011, two years after he was provisionally suspended by the UCI, pending the outcome of the CONI hearing. He was also fined 9,625 euros.

Bosisio was subjected to an out-of-competition test in September because his blood values did not correspond to the parameters recorded in his “biological passport,” the medical monitoring program instituted by the UCI in 2008.

A subsequent test showed evidence that Basisio had used recombinant erythropoietin, an exogenous version of the natural hormone that triggers red blood cell production. At the time, Bosisio denied ever having used the performance-enhancing substance.

“I’ve never taken EPO and I repeat that I am innocent,” Bosisio told CONI in November.

Bosisio is a former winner of the Giro del Lazio and the Giro d’Oro. He won the seventh stage in the 2008 Giro d’Italia and then wore the maglia rosa for a day after the 14th stage.

The 29-year-old LPR rider underwent an out-of-competition test in September that detected traces of the blood-booster EPO. He denied using the banned substance.

“I’ve never taken EPO and I repeat that I am innocent,” said Bosisio.

LPR was the team of Italian Danilo Di Luca, who finished second in the Giro d’Italia in May only to be suspended later for failing two doping tests during the race.

Bosisio came under suspicion due to the UCI’s “biological passport,” which since its creation last year has charted the blood parameters of every professional in the world.

Blood samples taken from riders are analyzed and compared to later readings on his/her passport. When anomalies appear the rider is often targeted by the UCI with a random doping control.