Juan Manuel Hernández, manager of Caja Rural: "We have been involved in a doping scheme with which we have nothing to do"
Cycling
A 23-page document leaked to the press and to the teams during the last Vuelta a Espana, in which the names of Caja Rural - Seguros RGA manager Juan Manuel Hernández and several riders (Orluis Aular's name was leaked) were linked to doctor Marcos Maynar and Operation Ilex, has prompted the Navarre team to respond to the press articles of the last few days.
In an interview with the Diario de Navarra, Hernández talks about everything and categorically denies that his team has anything to do with doping.
FILTERING
"It wasn't a bombshell. We knew it was there since the Vuelta. We followed the due deadlines to file the complaint."
DENUNCIATION
"There is a complaint to the Guardia Civil (Spanish Police, ed.), which has already detected the alleged leaker. We do not know who he is; we will know with the complaint we have filed. We may have our suspicions, but it is not official yet".
DOPING
"The damage that has been done to the image of the team is important, knowing that we have nothing to do with Maynar. We work with the University of Cáceres, as we also work with the University of Madrid and Murcia. We have been involved in a doping plot with which we have nothing to do. We are not in the case. Many riders from many teams work with the University of Cáceres, and we are not involved in any case or lawsuit. The UCO (Guardia Civil, ed.) has filed the complaint to defend us, because we have nothing to do with it".
IT IS STATED THAT HE TOOK RIDERS IN PUBLIC TO DR. MARCOS MAYNAR
"Of course. I'm the one who talks to the coaches and the universities because I'm the team manager. I went to the University of Cáceres, I was there and I didn't meet Maynar. I took four cyclists, whose names I'm not going to say. As others go to Madrid, to UCAN or with individuals".
WHATSAPP CONVERSATIONS
"They are not mine, they are between cyclists that I took them and little else. I've only been to Cáceres once, and Maynar wasn't there. I have had no contact with him at all. There's no wiretap from me. I took them there because I'm the team manager and I'm the one who negotiates with everyone".
UNIVERSITY OF CÁCERES RELATED TO THE ILEX OPERATION
"Until the matter exploded we had no idea. We were working with a certain Nacho, who later also appeared to be implicated. He worked with the physical preparation of some of our cyclists, as he was in charge of the preparation of others from many other teams. Nowhere does it appear that our cyclists have taken or done anything unusual".
CYCLIST REACTION
"As soon as the matter came to light, we stopped working with that university. We have provided the UCO with all the information they have requested. But we have never, ever been involved in anything. That is why we are calm.
FEAR FOR THE FUTURE?
"Neither the UCI nor anyone else has told us anything because there is nothing. Not on paper and we hope not. We can justify in every way that we have nothing to do with the Ilex plot. That is why we have denounced. We know what is in that dossier, how it has been done and how everything has been taken out of context. There is nothing here and it is very sad that we have to defend ourselves. But there has been someone who has acted in very bad faith".
Read also
Article written by Juan Larra.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
- Thibau Nys does exactly what Iserbyt is calling forRafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
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