Learn From the Past?

For certain on Monday morning, we and Alberto Contador will finally find out the decision of the CAS tribunal. A concerned party told me today: “What does it matter now, Even if he is found guilty, the past year of stalling and mismanagement has proved the system flawed.”

And I fully agree. Regardless of the result on Monday morning, whether or not Alberto ate contaminated meat or he met with contaminated influences, nothing has been resolved.

The UCI did show preferential treatment (Mr McQuaid’s iconic line “The UCI is impartial, but come on, this is Alberto Contador”). No policy or protocol has been introduced to counter this impartiality. The current advanced planning of the UCI, (itself fed up with the drawn out decisions of dopers by CAS) to set up its own court of arbitration, is a very poor move. The body is already self regulating and has proved that it cannot do so without objectivity and neutrality.

After the 2-year sham concerning Valverde, the CAS has learn’t nothing and no ceiling has been set of the budget of defence or the length of time a case can take. It is vital that EVERY athlete has an opportunity to prove his innocence, it is also vital the same, the exact same opportunities be awarded to all athletes, regardless of position, rank or wealth. The defence team of Alberto Contador not only dwarfs the prosecution on man hours but also funding.

So will life continue on Monday in the world of cycling if it’s number one rider is proved a cheat? It certainly will. We hope the CAS has examined all the evidence and releases an honest result. As none of us are aware of all the facts and wish to move forward, we should all accept the judgment…and move on.

Life will not stall, pedals will not stop turning, and the damage is done. We just hope that all concerned can learn from the abysmally managed process and refine the system.

Rather than just point the finger, the following points could be the beginning of a possible improvement to the system. More informed parties could develop and evolve these into working protocols to protect our sport and its clean riders in the future.

1. ‘Standardized’ test machinery across the WADA approved labs. Some testing procedures fail to rapidly evolve and accept a proven test for plasticizers would have ended his case in a week. The WADA labs must rapidly evolve with the technology to detect substances. Rider and teams who choose to break the rules must not get the opportunity to remain one step ahead of the detection system.

2. The 14 weeks of grace offered to Contador when found positive, and no other rider, illustrates the favoritism the UCI have for certain riders. The governing body must be completely above suspicion and not to be seen to offer preferential treatment, as has been the case. Prejudice must never be an element in the anti doping system. Bike Pure call for a concrete system of notification when a positive test is returned, notifying the rider, his team and national body within hours and the press within days.

3. The national governing body, (in Contador’s case, the Spanish body) must be removed from, or form only part of the sanctioning system. Contador’s case proved that national pride has already affected the outcome. A non-national or third party federation could and should offer full impartiality. A neighboring country could hear the tribunal cases of its regional area.

4. The Court of Arbitration for sport exists to hand down judgments where the athlete appeals against the ruling of the governing body. Every athlete must have this option as an opportunity to prove his or her case, but the length of an appeal must be time specific and follow fixed time lines. A given period should exist to permit a case to be prepared and submitted. A ceiling should also be placed on the cost of defense, limiting the advantage that a wealthy athlete has over a less affluent one. Money should not oversee truth.  Bike Pure call for ‘A simple no race ban’ until the suspicious return is quashed or enforced and the increase in size and funding to the CAS.