Christian Prudhomme, the director of the Tour de France, has called for the Spanish Cycling Federation (RFEC) and the International Cycling Union (UCI) to come to a swift verdict in the case of Alberto Contador, according to La Marca. Speaking at the presentation of this year’s Vuelta a España route in Alicante, on Spain’s Mediterranean coast, the Frenchman expressed a hope that the Tour de France winner's positive test for trace amounts of clenbuterol would be decided soon.
“I expect a response before long, as quickly as possible,” he said. “The Spanish Federation and the UCI must decide before the start of the season.”
The last, and only other, time the winner of the Tour de France tested positive for a banned substance was in 2006, when Floyd Landis failed a test for synthetic testosterone after his long breakaway victory on stage 17 that put him back into overall contention. With the numerous appeals and arbitration panels that followed Landis’ denials, it was not until September 2007, fourteen months after the finish of the race, that the final victory was awarded to Oscar Pereiro.
Prudhomme and the Tour’s owners ASO will certainly hope for a swifter resolution this time around.
[NB. Although Landis has since confessed to doping for much of his career – implicating many of his teammates, including seven-time Tour winner Lance Armstrong – he still maintains that he specifically did not use synthetic testosterone in the 2006 Tour.]
On the subject of the Vuelta route, which is a rival to the Tour even if ASO now has a stake in the race, Prudhomme was impressed.
“I think it’s an interesting route,” he said, “with the mountaintop finishes well spread out and attractive finishes that promise excitement on every stage.
“Just like last season,” the Frenchman concluded, “the result will be uncertain right up to the final kilometre."
Hopefully the result of the Vuelta will be known after the final kilometre; unlike last year's Tour, whose winner will likely not be known until after the final court case.