Tyler Hamilton

:This article is about the cyclist. For the Canadian Idol contestant, see Tyler Hamilton (musician).

Doping and suspension

At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Hamilton won the gold medal in the men's time trial. That medal was placed in doubt on September 21, 2004, after it was revealed that he had failed a test for blood doping (receiving blood transfusions to boost performance) at the Olympics. Two days after the announcement of his positive test result at Athens, however, the IOC announced that Hamilton would keep his gold medal because the results of a second, backup sample were inconclusive. The Athens lab had frozen the backup sample according to their standard protocol, which made it impossible to repeat the blood doping test. At the time Hamilton had just withdrawn from the Vuelta a España. He won the stage 8 individual time trial on September 11, 2004, but resigned from the race six days later citing stomach issues. Being the winner of the stage, he was subjected to anti-doping tests, and was informed by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) on September 13, 2004 that his two test samples from 2 days earlier had showed the presence of a "foreign blood population."

Related Topics:
2004 Summer Olympics - Athens - September 21 - Blood doping - Vuelta a España - September 11 - Union Cycliste Internationale - September 13

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Hamilton's career is currently in limbo, and his guilt or innocence has been the subject of extensive debate in the cycling community. Despite initially supporting Hamilton, his Phonak team managers withdrew their support after a second member of the team Santiago Perez was also found positive for the same offense at the Vuelta a España. Both riders have since been fired from the team, which at the time was fighting for inclusion in the UCI ProTour.

Related Topics:
Santiago Perez - Vuelta a España - UCI ProTour

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

On April 18, 2005 he was sentenced by the United States Anti-Doping Agency to a two-year suspension from professional cycling, the maximum sentence for a first-time offense. Hamilton appealed the ruling with the North American Court of Arbitration for Sport on May 6, 2005, but the court upheld the ruling and the suspension went into effect immediately. He has a final appeal pending with the International Court of Arbitration for Sport. Should his suspension be upheld, Hamilton will not be allowed to sign with another UCI ProTour team within a four year period from his first positive.

Related Topics:
April 18 - 2005 - United States Anti-Doping Agency - May 6 - Court of Arbitration for Sport - UCI ProTour

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~