Contador loses 2010 Tour de France title

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, Feb. 6 (UPI) -- Alberto Contador has been stripped of his 2010 Tour de France championship because he was found to have used a prohibited substance during the race.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport, in a decision announced Monday, was partially upholding appeals from the World Anti-Doping Agency and International Cycling Union. As a result, Contador had his 2010 Tour de France title removed and he was banned from competitive racing for two years.

He is eligible to return to competition Aug. 5.

The CAS said urine samples from Contador contained clenbuterol, a sympathomimetic amine generally used for breathing disorders. The substance is banned from use in sports as a performance-enhancing drug. It has been at the center of several doping allegations.

Contador, 29, won his third Tour de France title in 2010 but a test during a rest day indicated the presence of clenbuterol. The cyclist blamed tainted food for the positive test but WADA and UCI said it was more likely from a blood transfusion.

A CAS panel said the two possibilities were "in theory, possible explanations for the adverse analytical findings but were, however, equally unlikely."

Since Contador, who didn't refute the test results but only how the substance got into his system, didn't meet conditions for reducing suggested periods of ineligibility, the CAS panel upheld a two-year ban from competition.