Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank Sungard) on the sign-in stage. (Image credit: Bettini Photo)
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has announced that it hopes to have a settlement of the Alberto Contador doping case by the end of June, which would thus make clear whether the Spaniard could ride the Tour de France this year.
“The CAS Secretary General has informed the parties that the CAS would be ready to establish a procedural calendar allowing for the settlement of the dispute before the end of June 2011,” according to the court's website.
The Court also confirmed that both the International Cycling Union (UCI) and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) have filed appeals against the decision of the Spanish Cycling Federation. It also said that it if all parties agreed, the two appeals will be consolidated into one case.
The Spanish Cycling Federation last month cleared the Team Saxo Bank-SunGard rider of charges that he had doped with Clenbuterol during the 2010 Tour de France.
The UCI appealed that decision to the CAS on March 24, telling Cyclingnews that it was not convinced that Contador had proven contamination and that professional cycling deserved to have the highest authority make the final decision.
