Floyd Landis loses doping appeal, 2006 Tour de France title

Floyd Landis loses doping appeal, 2006 Tour de France title American cyclist Floyd Landis lost his last chance to retain his 2006 Tour de France title on Monday after CAS panel upheld previous positive doping test. A three-person panel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld a previous decision by the American Arbitration Association, ruling his positive doping test during the Tour two years ago was a valid one. In addition to losing his 2006 Tour de France title, Floyd Landis will have to pay $100,000 toward the legal fees of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. The Monday ruling also upholds Landis' two-year ban from cycling, which is due to end Jan. 29, 2009. Although the CAS panel agreed with the idea that the French lab was less than perfect, the evidence presented over the five-day hearing didn't change the final outcome. The panel ruled that the presence of exogenous testosterone or its precursors of metabolites in Floyd Landis' sample proves that he violated the anti-doping rules of the International Cycling Union.

"I am saddened by today's decision. I am looking into my legal options and deciding on the best way to proceed," Floyd Landis said in a statement, after the CAS ruling. The decision comes just six days before the start of the 2008 Tour. Landis won the 2006 edition after a stunning comeback in Stage 17, a rally that turned out to be fuelled by synthetic testosterone.

While the 2006 Tour de France saga was in full swing, the British odds makers at Sportingbet posted the odds on the 2008 edition of the chase. At the bookie favorite to win the 2008 Tour de France is Cadel Evans with odds 7/4, followed by Alejandro Valverde at 5/2 and Denis Menchov with odds 13/2.

Published on 06/30/2008