Matija Kvasina

Matija Kvasina (born 4 December 1981) is a Croatian racing cyclist, who is currently suspended from the sport after a positive doping test.[1] He finished 56th in the road race and 38th in the road time trial at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Matija Kvasina
Kvasina in 2014
Personal information
Full nameMatija Kvasina
Born (1981-12-04) 4 December 1981
Nova Gradiška, SFR Yugoslavia
(now Croatia)
Height180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight72 kg (159 lb)
Team information
Current teamSuspended
DisciplineRoad
RoleRider
Professional teams
2004–2008Perutnina Ptuj
2009Amica Chips–Knauf
2009Loborika
2010Zheroquadro–Radenska
2010–2012Loborika
2012Tuşnad
2013–2015Gourmetfein–Simplon
2016Synergy Baku
2017Felbermayr–Simplon Wels
Major wins
Stage races
Rhône-Alpes Isère Tour (2014)
Tour of Croatia (2016)
Flèche du Sud (2017)

Single-day races and Classics

National Time Trial Championships (2004, 2006–2008, 2013, 2015–2016)
National Road Race Championships (2005)

Career

Born in Nova Gradiška, Kvasina was named by Synergy Baku as part of their squad for the 2016 season.[2]

In 2016, he won the overall title at Tour of Croatia.[3]

Doping

Kvasina tested positive for an experimental drug known as Molidustat (BAY-85-3934), during two tests taken during the 2017 Fleche du Sud - a race in which he won. Molidustat represents a class of drugs that act on the same physiological pathways and enzyme cascades as those which are activated during altitude training. Oxygen deprivation has the effect of stimulating the body's production of erythropoietin (EPO) - Molidustat imitates this.[4] [5] Kvasina was subsequently kicked out of the 2017 Tour of Austria.[6]

In oxygen poor environments the human body manufactures a protein called hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), which initiates and drives the processes which allow the body to adapt to those low-oxygen conditions. Typically this involves increasing the concentrations of naturally made EPO, mobilising iron and an increase in the rate of red blood cell production. Under normal oxygen environmental conditions, HIF is kept in check (its actions are inhibited) by an enzyme called prolyl hydroxylase (PH). Moldustat stops PH from blocking HIF, thus, increasing both the concentrations of EPO and red blood cells in the body, imitating altitude training.[4]

Major results
2004
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
6th Overall Tour of Slovenia
2005
1st Road race, National Road Championships
10th Overall Tour of Slovenia
2006
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
5th Overall Tour of Slovenia
2007
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
2nd GP Triberg-Schwarzwald
6th Overall Tour of Slovenia
10th Sparkassen Giro Bochum
2008
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
2nd Trofeo Zsšdi
2nd Ljubljana–Zagreb
8th Overall Tour of Slovenia
2009
2nd Giro Valli Aretine
3rd Grand Prix Cycliste de Gemenc
6th Overall Tour of Slovenia
2010
4th Trofeo Internazionale Bastianelli
9th Giro del Veneto
10th Overall Course de la Solidarité Olympique
2011
1st Banja Luka–Belgrade II
1st Central European Tour Miskolc GP
National Road Championships
2nd Time trial
3rd Road race
6th Overall Tour of Bulgaria
6th Trofeo Avis
8th Overall Tour of Slovenia
2012
1st Overall Tour of Romania
1st Stage 5
2nd Overall Sibiu Cycling Tour
3rd Time trial, National Road Championships
4th Overall Tour of Szeklerland
1st Mountains classification
1st Stages 3 & 4 (ITT)
4th Central European Tour Miskolc GP
5th Overall Tour de Serbie
8th Overall Istrian Spring Trophy
2013
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
2nd Overall Sibiu Cycling Tour
3rd Overall Okolo Jižních Čech
1st Stage 3
4th Raiffeisen Grand Prix
8th Overall Giro del Friuli-Venezia Giulia
9th Overall Istrian Spring Trophy
1st Mountains classification
10th Overall Tour of Austria
2014
1st Overall Rhône-Alpes Isère Tour
1st Mountains classification Circuit des Ardennes
2nd Trofej Umag
3rd Road race, National Road Championships
3rd Overall Okolo Slovenska
5th Overall Tour de Bretagne
6th Tour de Berne
2015
National Road Championships
1st Time trial
3rd Road race
3rd Overall Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
9th Overall Rhône-Alpes Isère Tour
9th Overall Czech Cycling Tour
2016
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
1st Overall Tour of Croatia
3rd Overall Tour de Serbie
8th Overall Tour d'Azerbaïdjan
9th Porec Trophy
2017
National Road Championships
1st Time trial
2nd Road race
1st Overall Flèche du Sud
7th Overall Rhône-Alpes Isère Tour
1st Mountains classification

References
  1. "Consequences Imposed on License-Holders as Result of Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRV) as per the UCI Anti-Doping Rules (ADR)" (PDF). UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. 29 August 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
  2. "News shorts: Bonnet hoping to return for Tour de France, Terpstra to ride Rotterdam six". cyclingnews.com. 13 November 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  3. "Matija Kvasina wins the 2016 Tour of Croatia". Tour of Croatia. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  4. "Kvasina positive for EPO stimulator at Fleche du Sud - Cyclingnews.com".
  5. "Croatian rider excluded from Tour of Austria for doping". 3 July 2017.
  6. http://www.uci.ch/mm/Document/News/CleanSport/17/63/88/20170703ProvisionalsuspensionsEN_English.PDF
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