Contador stripped of 2010 Tour de France title

[herr_oberst]

I don't like the guy, but this doesn't make me happy, either, for a lot of reasons.


"MADRID — Alberto Contador was stripped of his 2010 Tour de France title Monday and banned for two years after sports' highest court found the Spanish cyclist guilty of doping.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport suspended the three-time Tour champion after rejecting his claim that his positive test for clenbuterol was caused by eating contaminated meat on a 2010 Tour rest day.

The three-man CAS panel upheld appeals by the International Cycling Union and World Anti-Doping Agency, which challenged a Spanish cycling tribunal's decision last year to exonerate Contador.

CAS backdated Contador's ban, and he is eligible to return to competition on Aug. 6. The ban means Contador will miss the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the London Olympics, but he would be eligible to ride in the Spanish Vuelta, which begins Aug. 18."

[Bill Douglas]

It's sad that such a great race ALWAYS has such a large number of cheats.

[Zeke]

It took this long?

I see that Lance's investigation was shut down w/o any charges. I have no doubts about Armstrong. The others just got caught.

[herr_oberst]

Originally Posted by Zeke

It took this long?

I see that Lance's investigation was shut down w/o any charges. I have no doubts about Armstrong. The others just got caught.

This. And this is one of the very reasons I'm so sad about the whole sorry mess.

[GH85Carrera]

Just like major league baseball. They all want that unfair advantage.

[450knotOffice]

From what I gather (speaking with avid cyclists who follow and do this stuff), it's been like this for many, many years.

[VincentVega]

Makes me sick.

When men were men

[HardDrive]

You might want to do a bit of reading about the early days of cycling. You make it sound like a cleaner time. It was not. It was way worse. There were virtually no rules.

Originally Posted by VincentVega

Makes me sick.

When men were men

[wdfifteen]

I think the authorities should just give up and make anything short of bionic body parts legal.

[VincentVega]

I'm really just a casual fan and dont claim to know all the details. However, if guys in the early days wanted to share a smoke at the top of the hill, take a few shots on the way up or do a few lines to ease the pain I somehow think that was the time.

If it's out in the open that doesnt make it right, but it seems more even. At least to me. I used to look forward to the tour every summer, watching just about every night and reading everything I could get ahold of. The constant cheating scandals, Landis especially, has turned me off.

[David]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

i think the authorities should just give up and make anything short of bionic body parts legal.

+1

[rhogg]

Originally Posted by David

+1

-1 it ceases to be sport and becomes ww.... Cycling is a beautiful sport ruined by doping.

[JavaBrewer]

Originally Posted by rhogg

-1 it ceases to be sport and becomes ww.... Cycling is a beautiful sport ruined by doping.

Cycling is a beautiful sport but if you are attracted to the pro peleton then well that's the game. Same as with all pro sports. When large money is involved well...it raises the competition level to something beyond "beautiful"...YMMV.

I agree with many here that some sort of doping has been going on for a long, long, long, time. I am to the point that none of the big names I recognize are immune.

[look 171]

Originally Posted by VincentVega

Makes me sick.

When men were men

The thought behind that was smoking would open up the lungs right before the big mountain pass.