The Court of Arbitration for Sport has officially confirmed that the long-awaited decision in the Alberto Contador case will be announced on Monday.
Speaking to VeloNation this evening, CAS secretary general Matthieu Reeb verified that the decision would indeed come at the start of next week. “The answer is yes, Monday 6 February, probably at around noon time (Swiss time),” he said.
The statement means that an end is finally in sight in relation to the case, which had its origins a full year and a half ago when Contador won the 2010 Tour de France, only to test positive for Clenbuterol. CAS had released a brief statement four days ago saying that the ruling would not come this week, as had previously been stipulated, but would instead be delayed by a few days.
“The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) intends to publish its decision in the arbitration procedure involving the International Cycling Union (UCI), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Alberto Contador and the Spanish Cycling Federation (RFEC) on Monday 6 February 2012,” it said in a statement.
However it added then that the day wasn’t necessarily binding. “A confirmation as to the date and time of the publication of the decision will be given by the CAS at the end of this week.”
It didn’t issue a press release today in relation to that, but Reeb confirmed to VeloNation this evening that the decision would indeed come in three days' time.
There have been many delays in relation to the case. It was originally due to be held prior to the 2011 Tour de France but this was pushed back more than once; a final date of November 21st – 24th was set. Once that hearing was held, CAS said that it would take approximately six weeks for a decision.
This timeframe ultimately proved inaccurate, with the court indicating on January 16th that the ruling was delayed until the week of January 31st due to media attention and speculation about the CAS judges.
An end is finally in sight, although both Contador and WADA/the UCI have the right to appeal the CAS decision to other courts.
In the meantime, Contador has continued to race. He won the Giro d’Italia and several other events last year, plus finished fifth in the Tour de France. More recently he won two mountain stages plus took second overall in the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, his first race of the year.
He is thought likely to compete on the first day of the Challenge Mallorca events on Sunday, then to fly back to Madrid in advance of the following day’s decision.
Also see: Legal experts give opinions prior to CAS Contador anti-doping decision