Austrian doping kingpin sentenced to 15 months jail.

Austrian athletes′ manager Stefan Matschiner was sentenced to 15 months in prison Monday in Vienna, at the end of a doping trial that highlighted his central role in a Europe-wide scandal.

A Vienna court found Matschiner guilty of having sold illicit performance-boosters, and for his involvement in blood doping.

Despite the sentence, of which 14 months are to be spent on probation, the former manager will not go to prison because he already spent several weeks in remand, the Austrian press agency APA reported.

The court found sufficient evidence that banned cycling pros Bernhard Kohl of Austria and Pietro Caucchioli of Italy, as well as Danish rider Michael Rasmussen, had visited Matschiner to receive blood doping.

Kohl, a key witness in the case, said that he financed Matschiner's blood centrifuge together with Rasmussen and Austrian cross-country skiing Olympic champion Christian Hoffmann. Matschiner has denied that charge.

The disgraced sports manager also supplied the blood boosting medication to athletes, including to retired Swiss cyclist Markus Zberg, the court found.

Matschiner has admitted supplying eight athletes with growth hormones, testosterone and blood boosters, but provided only the names of Kohl and an Austrian triathlete.

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