Danish biker tests positive for EPO

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - A mountain biker in Denmark's Olympic team has tested positive for the banned blood-boosting drug EPO before the Beijing Games opening next week, the Danish National Olympic Committee said on Monday.

Peter Riis Andersen, 28, tested positive for erythropoietin at a test administered by Anti-Doping Denmark on June 25, the National Olympic and Sports Federation of Denmark announced at a news conference.

Anderson was ejected from the Danish Olympic delegation after his B sample was also positive.

A dejected and teary-eyed Andersen admitted taking the drug and said he had felt under pressure after a string of bad results.

"All I could think about was that I had to raise my level for the Games," he told reporters. "I could feel it in my body that it was working. I think it's cowardly to cheat in sport, but it's even more cowardly not to admit it."

Andersen's German team, ALB-GOLD, fired him after the positive test. The Danish rider finished 18th in the cross-country race at the Athens Olympics in 2004.

Three riders tested positive for EPO in the Tour de France which finished on Sunday, including Italian Riccardo Ricco, a winner of two mountain stages.

(Reporting by Gelu Sulugiuc; Editing by John Mehaffey)