Contador :CAS hearing - Page 3

ok this is non sense, they let Contador compete for 1 1/2 years only to strip him off all the trophies and prize money won during this time... i'll take my stance on Contador's side,

edit.= Laurent Jalabert adds another angle to the same issue (the retroactive sanction), " how are going to feel all the cyclists that place 2nd. behind Contador during this time "
Edited by vspa - 2/7/12 at 6:36am

I don't think they had any choice except to make it retroactive.  I think it's the right call given the situation.

 

I never did believe the steak story anyways.

 

I'd also say that there needs to be some sort of shakeup in Spain for not coming to this conclusion back when it was in their control.

The Spanish have a habit of protecting their own. He isn't the first cyclist to receive special treatment, nor is he the first athlete.

Generally when a rider tests positive everybody turns his back on him, team, media, sponsors, etc.

In contador's case this has not happened. Not only the Spanish support contador, but also his team (that has just announced a spot featuring Contador to get more clients for the bank), sponsors still trust him, and people like Eddy Merckx, and many other riders and team directors. I'm not saying he is innocent or gilty, just say what I see. In many people's mind Contador is a victim.

sopas, he is a victim in my mind as well, regardless of guilt or innocence.  First, the delay in the process is unfair to the athlete, and in itself leads to suspicion.   If both samples test positive above a real and meaningful threshold that has been shown to give a performance advantage in the event, then the penalty should be swift. 

 

But if what I've read in the press was true, the levels of banned substance found were virtually insignificant, at least a hundred times less than the level found to give performance boost.  If the drug is used in legal prescription inhalants, seems to me someone could easily be exposed to trace amounts virtually anywhere.  What if someone at the finish line was using the spray for an asthma attack, or worse, sprayed inhalant into the air as he went by intentionally? 

 

Particularly for legal drugs, I believe a reasonable threshold needs to be set based on performance advantage, taking into account the ability of the lab to reliabily measure.  Further, the level was actually many times below the "threshold of detection" capability required for WADA-certified labs.  Samples with levels below that level could be noted as "trace, or insignificant", and no action taken.  If no other lab in the world could repeat the measurement, how do we know it's even true? 

 

I'll admit my bias in these cases goes with the athlete.  The burden of proof must be on the UCI and WADA, not the athlete.  If the B sample must be sent to some special lab for extra-sensitive series of tests, just in an effort to see what we can find against the cyclist, that's not fair, it's a witch hunt or inquisition.  Just seems to me the sport has to find a better way here before ruining careers and reputations.

 

Note, the "facts" I've read and my interpretation could be all wrong, and Contador could be as guilty as any other drug cheat.  But in any event, I can understand how much of the public in Spain would support him. 

 

I was hoping he was innocent.  What a blow to our sport.  Also a blow to his friend Andy who doesn't want the TDF win this way.  That said...I would like to see the governing bodies and the media put as much attention towards doping in all sports, especially baseball and NFL.  I think we get the brunt of it because cycling is low hanging fruit for them.  Also, the fans actually care that this problem is dealt with.  In polls it shows that the baseball fans, for one group, don't seem to care that much about doping.  They would rather see someone like Barry Bonds hit it out of the park than to see fair play.  Of course, there's action during the entirety of a bike race.  In baseball, sometimes the only activity seems to be the grass growing in the outfield.  So the fans need more home runs to pick up the slack.  Sorry to offend you baseball fans.  Just my snarky opinion.

Because the CAS has actually said that the blood doping theory that WADA had is not really possible.. the steak theory of Contador is not likely either.. they said that the most likely theory is that Contador accidentally ingested contaminated food supplement.. but in the end he couldn't prove it and athletes are responsible for what's in their bodies so he was banned.. but the felt that he likely didn't intentionally cheat...

 

"The Panel found that there were no established facts that would elevate the possibility of meat contamination to an event that could have occurred on a balance of probabilities. Unlike certain other countries, notably outside Europe, Spain is not known to have a contamination problem with clenbuterol in meat. Furthermore, no other cases of athletes having tested positive to clenbuterol allegedly in connection with the consumption of Spanish meat are known."

 

"The Panel concluded that both the meat contamination scenario and the blood transfusion scenario were, in theory, possible explanations for the adverse analytical findings, but were however equally unlikely. In the Panel’s opinion, on the basis of the evidence adduced, the presence of clenbuterol was more likely caused by the ingestion of a contaminated food supplement."

 

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/contador-cas-to-rule-on-2-4-million-euro-fine-later

 

 

Ahhh - the ol' 'fairness routine' (or lack thereof), in all its glory.  Sure is a 'sad sack' act, if I ever saw one.  Poor cycling - the governing bodies are just picking on cyclists for no good reason. 

 

A mature person (IMO) takes responsibility and is accountable for his/her actions, doesn't try to deflect, nor attempt to put into perspective their own nefarious behavior, and furthermore, neither do they portray themselves as victims.  Sure, to do the opposite has apparently become the 'American way' (more accurately it seems, the busted cyclist's way) - most unfortunately so.  Cycling needs to clean up its own filthy yard as opposed to looking over the fence at others' yards.
 

Want to gripe about disparate treatment of dopers, look no further at the authorities in and out of MLB that have saw to it to destroy BB's livelihood, all the while allowing one Mark McGwire ("I'm not here to talk about the past") to be featured on television while part of the coaching staff of the World Series winning team.  Much better placement for a snarky comment, IMO...

 

Fair: As in Fairytale, a concept taught in grammer school and discounted by the sane if you want survive.