Cyclist's wife still held in France

Lawyers for Edita Rumsiene, wife of Lithuanian Tour de France bronze medalist Raimondas Rumsas, submitted a third request for her to be released on bail Aug. 30.

Rumsiene has been held in a jail in the French Alps town of Bonneville since her arrest July 28 after border guards allegedly found performance-enhancing drugs in her car as she attempted to leave France.

Earlier, authorities questioned Rumsiene for three hours.

"The court listened to her, and she added some details to previous statements," said attorney Alexandre Varaut. "I cannot say much about it. It was a long questioning, it was beneficial to the truth and, I hope, the release of Edita Rumsiene."

Earlier last week, President Valdas Adamkus invited the charge d' affairs of the French Embassy in Vilnius to a meeting about Rumsiene, after a French court rejected the second appeal to release her from jail.

French judges refused the release order because they have reportedly not questioned all parties to the case.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Petras Zapolskas said Lithuania would "strive for Rumsiene's release and be as persistent as the French judges who reject our appeals."

If charged with disseminating and trafficking doping materials, Rumsiene would face up to seven years in jail and a fine of 150,000 euros.

Rumsas, who passed several doping tests during and after the race, says the drugs Rumsiene was carrying were meant for her mother, who suffers from cancer.

Doctors have said the drugs can be used to treat cancer.

Lawyers have argued that Rumsiene's failure to declare the drugs did not warrant prolonged detention, but French authorities have said they were investigating whether she had supplied the drugs to Rumsas or his teammates.

After Rumsas passed a doping test in Riga in early August, many expected Rumsiene to be released.

Rumsiene was allegedly carrying cortisone, testosterone, erythropoietin and other drugs when stopped trying to drive across the French-Italian border.