Cycling is dead meat. Maybe.
The latest juicy story to ravage the sport concerns a positive drug test for three-time Tour de France champ Alberto Contador, whose urine sample July 21 was found to have the banned substance clenbuterol. Lest he be burned at the, um, steak, Contador claims a piece of filet mignon bought in Spain contained the drug, which sometimes is used illegally to speed up growth and increase muscle mass in cattle. Even if that’s true — and several doctors and doping experts flanking his argument already have said it’s plausible — a World Anti-Doping Agency official said even the smallest amounts of clenbuterol could be enough to sanction an athlete.
So what does that mean for cycling, a sport hit on the rump by scandal after scandal? In the rare event Contador is cleared, perhaps the sport rolls on, still bloody with suspicion. And maybe future tests for substances like clenbuterol include a threshold amount that results in a positive finding rather than a failure coming simply from the presence of the drug.
But if in grilling Contador an investigation finds him guilty of cheating, it would roast whatever’s left of cycling’s credibility. His title from this year’s Tour would be stripped, and the first two victories for the world’s top rider forever would be tarnished.
In other words, any hope of cycling having a meaningful future would be chucked in the garbage like, well, so much spoiled beef.
