Cycling: Alberto Contador Receives Two-Year Ban

The long, strange, doping case for Tour and Giro champ Alberto Contador may finally be nearing an end.  Earlier today, the Spaniard received a two-year ban from the sport of cycling after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld an earlier ruling to pan the rider after he tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol at the 2010 Tour de France.

When the positive test was first revealed, Contador found himself banned in his home country, although that ruling was quickly over turned. Clenbuterol can be used as a performance enhancing drug because it aids in breathing in intense aerobic activities – such as cycling. Alberto had trace elements of the drug in his system, which he says came from beef that had been tainted with the substance. That defense was enough to reverse his ban from the Spanish Cycling Federation, but the International Cycling Union (UCI) overruled that reversal. Since then, there have been a number of delays, appeals, and legal moves to keep Contador riding, but the CAS ruling seems to put an end to case altogether.

The ban, which is likely to be retroactive to August 6, 2010, will strip Contador of his 2010 Tour de France championship, as well as his 2011 Giro d'Italia. It also means that he won't be able to compete in this year's grand events either, although he can resume racing after August 6th of this year.

Because of the small amounts of clenbuterol in his system, it has been tough to decide whether or not Contador has been telling the truth about the tainted meat or if he was using some kind of masking agent. But the UCI and CAS essentially have argued that any amount of a banned substance is grounds for a suspension from the sport. Furthermore, the zero-tolerance approach is for the biggest stars in the sport as well as the rank and file in the Peloton. In my opinion, Contador is lucky they're back-dating the ban and that it isn't two years starting today. After all, it isn't like he hasn't been riding over the past year and a half since the positive test.

That said, the Tour de France is going to be very different without him riding in it this year and I'll miss Contador's presence at the race. Even though he didn't win in 2011, and really wasn't in contention much, he still rode strong and tried to get back into the race in the mountains. He showed the heart (and legs!) of a champion, even if it ultimately proved to be a futile gesture. If he isn't able to ride the TdF in July, it certainly blows the race wide open once again.

LIVESTRONG Celebrates 15th Anniversary

In October of 1996, Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Shortly there after he would undergo treatment for the disease, and his subsequent recovery was nothing short of spectacular. The pro-cyclist who was all but unknown outside of his sport at the time, but he would go on to win seven consecutive Tour de France titles and become one of the most well known athletes on the planet.

In January of 1997, the Lance Armstrong Foundation was formed, with the hope of rallying people together against cancer. That foundation would evolve into what is now known as LIVESTRONG, an organization that has invested more than $275 million in cancer research and other intiaitives. That accounts for over 81% of every dollar that LIVESTRONG has raised, which is a remarkably high number for any charitable organization, and is a testament to how razor-focused Lance, and the rest of the team at LIVESTRONG, are on combatting the horrible disease.

Nearly everyone I know has been touched by cancer in their lives in some way or another, and through LIVESTRONG, we can all help find a cure. Not only can we continue to buy those ubiqutious yellow arm bands, which I'm seldom seen without, but Nike has an entire line of LIVESTRONG workout gear, whose proceeds go directly toward helping the cause. To checkout a sampling of that gear and to find 15 ways that you can LIVESTRONG, click here.

I personally own a number of LIVESTRONG articles of clothing and they are amongst my favorite t-shirts and running shorts. It doesn't hurt that I know that I'm helping to do good every time I buy one as well.

Congrats to Lance and the crew for an amazing first 15 years, and here's to many more to come.

Cycling News From Outside Mag

With the professional cycling season coming to an end for another year, fans of the sport are already looking ahead to 2012, when new teams, riders jumping ship to different squads, and a full schedule of races should keep things interesting. With that in mind, Outside magazine has a couple of interesting articles for us to think about.

First up, we get a nice first look at the just announced routes for both the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France. Both races will offer very different course from this year, which will have an impact on the peloton and just who has a legitimate chance of winning the race. The Giro, for instance, has done away with some of the long post-stage transfers that have bothered racers in the past, and now a more logical and liner route for the most part. The race will start out flat, but in the later stages it shifts into some very tough mountain stages, which will no doubt favor the climbers in the General Classification.

In contrast, the Tour will favor riders with outstanding time trial experience, offering three times as much TT action in 2012 then it did in 2011. That's not good news for the Schleck brothers, Andy and Frank, who have been in contention the past few years, but have not been able to keep pace in the individual time trials in particular. There will still be plenty of climbing of course, including some never before seen routes, but there is one fewer mountaintop finish this time out, and the course seems to favor the more skilled all around riders, like this year's winner Cadel Evans or three-time champ Alberto Contador.

Speaking of Contador, Outside also scored an interesting interview with the Spaniard, which you can read by clicking here. Contador is still awaiting a hearing over a pending drug suspension for a positive test of the banned substance clenbuterol in last year's Tour de France. In the interview, which is quite short, he touches upon how he got started in the sport, what he does to relax in the off season, and how it felt to finish off the podium in this year's Tour.

As of now, Contador's drug hearing is scheduled for November 22.