CAS' Ullrich verdict delayed

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has decided to postpone its final verdict on the Jan Ullrich case to November 30. The hearing of the case, in which the UCI accuses Swiss Olympic of having dropped its investigation against the former rider when he was allegedly implicated in Operacion Puerto, took place in August and was initially due to be ruled last week.

"The verdict will be announced on November 30 at the latest," Ullrich's media manager Falk Nier told Cyclingnews upon our request for an interview. "Jan will respond to your questions following the CAS ruling."

The 1997 Tour de France winner fell from grace when his T-Mobile team released the rider in the wake of the Spanish blood doping scandal surrounding Eufemiano Fuentes in 2006. One year later, Ullrich's DNA was used to reportedly match blood found at Fuentes' headquarters to him.

As Ullrich retired from the sport and left the Swiss federation in 2006, Swiss authorities claim they have no jurisdiction to open an investigation any more. Having turned to CAS about the matter, the UCI hopes to set a precedent for retired riders not being immune to legal proceedings if caught up in doping cases.