Vienna  - Lisa Huetthaler, a key witness in Austria's ongoing doping scandal, announced Tuesday that she ended her thriathlon career, some five months before her ban would have expired in September.

"My doping past and its emotional and physical consequences have taken an extreme toll on me," 25-year-old Huetthaler said in a statement quoted by Austrian press agency APA.

The 2007 national champion made headlines in late March when she publicly accused the former sports manager Stefan Matschiner of having supplied her with the blood booster EPO.

On Tuesday, Huetthaler admitted that she had tried to bribe a laboratory technician at the national anti-doping agency with 50,000 euros (67,000 dollars) for altering test results in her favour.

She failed a doping test last year and was banned from competition for 18 months.

Matschiner's former clients also include disgraced Austrian cyclist Bernhard Kohl, who has alleged that he received blood doping services from Matschiner.

After the blood centrifuge and transfusion machine in question were found in Budapest last Saturday, Austrian investigators said Tuesday they would try to find DNA samples of possible other clients on the equipment.

As allegations about Matschiner's list of clients spilled over to other European countries, Slovenian steeplechase champion Bostjan Buc on Tuesday dismissed media reports which mentioned him in connection with the doping scheme. (dpa)