Alexandre Vinokourov wins CAS appeal
The Court of Arbitration for Sport has ruled in favour of Alexandre Vinokourov, declaring that the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) can not enforce the 2007 “Riders’ commitment
to a new cycling” declaration. The contract was signed before that year’s Tour de France by all participating riders and stated that any rider dealt with a standard two-year doping suspension would be responsible for contributing a year’s salary to the UCI
anti-doping program.
“This initiative, put in place 19 days before the 2007 Tour,” read a statement released by the CAS, “is nothing other than a public relations exercise with the aim of restoring
the credibility and honesty of cycling in general. The UCI does not have sufficient legal basis to claim payment of a contribution based on the signing of this commitment by the riders.”
The CAS has not released the details of the hearing, held in Lausanne on 31 August, but it appears that the precedent has been set and riders will no longer be responsible for paying
the fine.
Vinokourov would go on to test positive for receiving a blood transfusion during that year’s Tour and was dealt a one-year ban from competition by the Kazakh cycling federation.
He announced that he would retire from the sport, but later changed his mind. The UCI, who originally recommended the standard two-year suspension, appealed the shorter ban to the CAS and they agreed to extend the ban until August 2009. The Kazakh rider then
responded by appealing the fine of 1.2 million euros which accompanied the ban.
“I accept,” read the document, “if it should happen that I violate the rules and am granted a standard sanction of a two-year suspension or more, in the Puerto affair or in any
other anti-doping proceedings, to pay the UCI, in addition to the standard sanctions, an amount equal to my annual salary for 2008 as a contribution to the fight against doping.”
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