Alberto Contador will miss the Tour de France, Giro d’ Italia and the London Olympics 2012
One of the most awaited decisions in the sport of cycling has finally come to an end after the Court of Arbitration for Sport made a final verdict on Alberto Contador’s case. CAS has sanctioned the cyclist with a two-year ban.
The Spaniard was tested positive for clenbuterol during the Tour de France 2010.
He was immediately banned by Spanish Cycling Federation, which later on removed the ban and Contador, hence, returned to professional cycling in March 2011.
UCI and WADA appealed against the Spanish Cycling Federation at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in March 2011. However, the Spaniard was allowed to race until the verdict on his case was finalised.
The CAS hearing faced many delays and controversies before the final date was postponed until February 6th, 2012.
UCI president Pat McQuaid shared his views on the issue, "This is a sad day for our sport. Some may think of it as a victory, but that is not at all the case. There are no winners when it comes to the issue of doping: every case, irrespective of its characteristics,
is always a case too many".
It was briefed in a press release, "However, the UCI has not derived a sense of satisfaction from the CAS ruling, but rather welcomes the news as the end of a long-running affair that has been extremely painful for cycling".
The cyclist started his 2012 campaign with Team Saxo Bank at the Tour de San Luis and finished second overall. He also won the third and the fifth stage of the Argentinean race.
The 29-year-old won the Tour de France 2010 but has now been stripped off from the victory, which now goes in the favour of Andy Schleck.
The Luxembourg cyclist finished second at the French Grand tour and is now the overall winner of the race.
The ban suggests that the Spaniard is ineligible for the Tour de France, London Olympics and the Giro. He will be allowed to ride the Vuelta a Espana 2012, which is scheduled on August 18th.
Alberto is considered as one of the strongest stage race cyclists in the sport and the ban has disappointed a number of his fans across the globe.
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