Vienna - Disgraced Austrian cross-country ski coach Walter Mayer has been arrested on doping charges, the Austrian Press Agency APA reported on Monday.

Citing prosecutors, APA said that Mayer is under investigation for buying the blood booster EPO at a Vienna pharmacist and distributing it to athletes.

The pharmacist is suspected of having sold doping substances to Mayer and an Austrian cyclist. The pharmacist and cyclist, who have not been identified, have also been arrested over the affair.

Mayer was at the centre of a doping scandal at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympics.

His presence at the Games, despite a ban for an incident at the 2002 Games, triggered a police raid on the Austrian cross-country and biathlon team in which syringes and drugs were found. (dpa)