Alberto Contador suffers Tour doping case defeat (AP)

Three days after Lance Armstrong claimed victory in his long-running doping battle, another Tour de France champion was on the losing end of a high-profile drug scandal that has tainted cycling's image. About 18 months after Alberto Contador failed a doping test while winning the 2010 Tour de France, the Spanish rider was stripped of his title Monday and banned for two years after sport's...

Contador's Tour dreams shattered by two-year ban (Reuters)
* Court rejects contaminated meat defence

Column: Contador is banned but was justice served? (AP)
Stripping Alberto Contador of his 2010 Tour de France victory on the supposition that he may have eaten a dodgy food supplement is like jailing Al Capone for tax evasion: Yes, Contador's accusers secured a conviction, but the verdict missed the point. Was this justice? Strictly speaking, it was. But it didn't feel that way.

Reaction to Contador's 2-year ban for doping (AP)
Reaction to the Court of Arbitration for Sport's ruling to strip Spanish cyclist Alberto Contador of his 2010 Tour de France title and ban him for two years for doping: -- -- -- "Alberto Contador presented an explanation for the presence of clenbuterol in his system -- the fact that he has ingested contaminated meat, that he had eaten during the Tour de France 2010.

Contador doping verdict another blow for cycling (AP)
Eddy Merckx wonders if someone is trying to "kill cycling." The cycling great deplored the decision Monday to strip Alberto Contador of his 2010 Tour de France title and ban him for two years for doping. The Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected Contador's claim that his positive test for clenbuterol was caused by eating contaminated meat.

Contador's Tour dream shattered by two-year ban (Reuters)
* Court rejects contaminated meat defence

Spain shows support for disgraced hero Contador (Reuters)
Spanish officials rallied behind national hero Alberto Contador on Monday after he was handed a two-year ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) for failing a dope test during the 2010 Tour de France and stripped of the title.

Garmin wins 2nd stage of Tour of Qatar (AP)
Garmin won the second stage at the Tour of Qatar on Monday, beating Quick Step by 7 seconds in the opening time trial of the season. In a slick performance from start to finish, Garmin finished the seven-mile route in 12 minutes, 38 seconds in sunny conditions. Sky Procycling was third, 9 seconds back.

Q+A-Cycling-Alberto Contador's doping case (Reuters)
Questions and answers on Alberto Contador's doping case after the Spaniard was handed a two-year ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday:

UPDATE 4-Cycling-Contador gets two year ban, loses Tour title (Reuters)
(Corrects para five to say Spain's Samuel Sanchez awarded third place)