Alberto Contador cleared of doping charges by Spanish federation

Ciaran, clenbuterol is a zero tolerance drug. If it's in a cyclist's system, the rules say that cyclist should be done. End of. You can disagree with that rule but you can't suddenly start talking about acceptable lower limits just because the cyclist in question happens to be a big shot.

I actually am (was? I don't know...) a fan of Contador but I still think it's completely wrong that he's off the hook, however convincing his story and however low the dose. The truth is, none of us knows if he's guilty or innocent - maybe he's just stupid or unlucky, or maybe he's as guilty as sin - but that's kind of irrelevant. He should still have to live by the rules like everyone else.

i seem to be in a minority here. The aim of any drug testing programme in any sport must be to prove illegal benefited to performance to gain an unfair and therefor illegal advantage. If you take any drugs and it doesn't affect performance due to the levels in the body being so low as to be irrelevant then where is the crime - I fail to see what the problem is. The level of this drug in Contador's body had been reported to be so low to offer no benefit or advantage.

It drives me nuts when people jump on the band wagon and castigate the athlete and the sport when there was according to the reports absolutely no way there could have been an unfair advantage in taking this miniscule amount of this drug.

I am not a great fan of Contador, buts fair fair. I see no reason for this witch hunt. None of the governing bodies seem to have been able to prove unfair advantage. Just whatever was found in the system. If you think Contador should be castigated when he gained no advantage I feels shows that this is then not about an uproar against cheating but something much more pathetic.

@whizz kid your mention of Tom prompted me adding a link to my photos of an early feb visit to Mont Ventoux !

http://bit.ly/gZNftM,Sun

As you will see it was sunny and warm, like my may/june visits in earlier years.

Think i was the first Aussie to the top n 2011 and came across some that reached tom's monument and because of 6ins on snow for a hundred metres turned back ! Incredible to ride so far and stop 800m short .

I've a suggestion for how Contador should be treated after this whole sorry mess concludes. Our response as cycling fans and yours as publications should take a leaf out of the BBC's book. When it saw the Sex Pistols racing up the charts in the weeks coming up to thee Silver Jubilee it simply chose to ignore the band. I propose that we do the same regarding Contador. A total media blackout. No features on him, no reports on his training schedule, no photos of him and no reports of his victories. Should he win, sites like road.cc focus on who finished second and 'award' the win appropriately. Similarly, all those who finish below Contador are moved up one place. Starving Condator and Saxobank of publicity will show both the UCI and Contador what the cycling community thinks of him.

I'm sure that the political economy that cycling publications exist in dictates that it is very difficult simply to shun one rider (regardless of his doping record) so I also suggest that consumers take a similar line: don't buy anything with Contador on the cover, and withdraw subscriptions similarly if necessary. The next stage would be to announce to all of Contador's sponsors -- Sidi, Specialized et al -- that we'll not buy their equipment until they end their association with Contador.

Unfortunately, serious times deserve serious measures. Contador's case looks like being swept under the carpet, which is another colossal blow to cycling's credibility. We should not stand for it any more.

Unbelievable ... well not really when you are tried by your own team

How can the UCI "clean up" cycling when they leave it up to the National Authorities to sort out.

Come on UCI take some responsibility and do something!!!!!

So if he didn't take the clembuterol himself and did get it from the steak are the Spanish cycling authorities accusing the Spanish beef farming industry of putting illegal growth hormones in their beef? Has Albertos mate who bought the steak conveniently forgotten where he got it from?

Maybe on this basis the Brititsh Cycling authorities should clear Tom Simpson and he should posthumously be awarded the Tour de France.

1. No point victimising Contador - in the peleton he's probably like the majority. Take andy schlek's support for contador as an example - hardly the lilely action of a clean rider who's had his dreams smashed by a doper!? We need to blame the system and the enforcers.

2. Does anyone else feel stupid for NOT taking something?

I hope he is loudly boo'd by every cycling fan on the road.

My nightmare now is a tour podium of Contador, Vino and Basso.

The whole '1 year ban' was obviously just the Spanish Federation testing the water to see the degree of outrage, made the right noises about an appeal being unsuccessful to make it look like they were still taking a 'hard stance' and then whoops... appeal successful because obviously no guilty rider would take the risk of a longer ban, would they?

Total joke when doping is so endemic in Spanish sport at the moment-all it will take is one top flight athlete to do a Ricco and all the same people that have been saying there is no basis to ban Contador will be baying for stricter controls and trying to protect their own backs.

Foolishness. And I have a horrible feeling the UCI and WADA might not have a huge amount to add to the matter...

Totally agre with the 'flip flop' comment, fixed on one side, free on the other.

Strangely the plasticiser evidence isn't discussed either. Blood transfusion is also doping. Hmm. He's not the only one doing that.

Imagine how popular he will be on the Tour de France climbs in July if it turns out that he escaped sanction from his national governing body, the REFC, on the technicality that the REFC failed to send him a particular letter!

this is a joke really, as others say, Spanish fed looking after their own it seems.

I havent paid much attention to this story since the first few days after it broke, but wasnt there some chat about there being evidence of plasticisers in his blood as well as the clenbutorol? ie evidence that he had been blood doping?

What a farce. I hope that the ASO see sense and stop him from riding the tour if there is an appeal with the CAS, otherwise (as someone points out above) it will be a joke of a race.

Spanish looking after their own. What about the Chinese SHACK rider? He Claimed the same drug entered his body through food and got done for 2years.

It makes a mockery of the whole system and sports governing bodies.

To quote Victor Meldrew .....

"I don't bloody belieeeve it !"

its a joke , and to be frank , it makes the watching of the tour yet again a waste of time.

If this isn't appealed it will be the worst day for professional cycling and drives a coach and horses through the rule book

contator and vinkerov(who says he wants to end his career in yellow) pick a winner and you get a special burger

I shouldnt be, but I'm astonished by this. I just dont see how they could clear him without clear evidence of how the substance got into his system - and if he has that evidence, why has no-one said so up until now?! Seems like an obvious case of a national body making up a reason to clear their own rider, and further damaging everyone's credibility. Nice work RFEC

Then again, I'd be even more amazed if it doesn't end up with CAS, and who knows whether that will happen before this year's TdF - are we looking at another Valverde-style farce, with a rider seeing how many wins they can get in races they should never have been allowed to ride?

**SLAP**

Not US Postal Services?

Basically - 'booooo'

We're going with the 'smug Alberto' pic on this one for obvious reasons.

Although once the postal services of various European countries have passed the relevant paperwork to UCI HQ he might not be smiling for long… although you might not even bet against that.

I spotted this on the BBC News site and rang you guys as you were reading the decision! Interesting point you made though that there's been no evidence where the contaminated steak may or may not have come from. Of course, there may well be a police investigation into food smuggling going on that we don't know about. However if this goes to appeal hopefully this will come out.