German cyclist Erik Zabel, fresh from admitting he took EPO (erythropoietin) in 1996, announced on Tuesday that he will not compete in the road race at next year's Beijing Olympic Games.

Zabel, 36, met with the president of the German Olympic committee (DOSB), Thomas Bach, and DOSB general secretary Michael Vesper in Frankfurt on Tuesday before announcing his decision.

The six-time winner of the Tour de France green jersey confessed he took the banned blood-booster EPO in 1996 - one of seven former Telekom cyclists, including 1996 Tour winner Bjarne Riis, who have admitted to using EPO.

Zabel, fourth in the road race at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, has yet to learn whether the German Cycling Federation will allow him to compete in September's cycling World Championships in Stuttgart.

Prosecutor recommends Scarponi suspension
The anti-doping prosecutor of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) on Tuesday recommended an 18-month ban for Michele Scarponi for his involvement in the Operación Puerto doping scandal.

Ettore Torri made his suggestion to the Italian cycling federation (FCI), who will decide Scarponi's fate.

CONI oversees the activities of all governing bodies in Italian sport, but leaves it to the federations themselves to deal with their own disciplinary issues.

Last month, Torri recommended a 21-month suspension for 2006 Giro d’Italia winner Ivan Basso, for his part in Operación Puerto. Basso is still waiting on the FCI's decision.

Scarponi and Basso both admitted having had contact with Eufemiano Fuentes, the Madrid gynecologist at the center of the scandal, but both deny ever actually taking banned substances or employing banned techniques, such as blood doping.

The Italians have said they were both planning to use doped blood for last year's Tour de France, before the scandal broke and they were thrown out of the race before the race ever started.