No ban for Kolobnev
Alexandr Kolobnev - the only rider to test positive during the 2011 Tour de France - escaped a sanction Tuesday when the Russian cycling federation only fined him and issued a warning.
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Alexandr Kolobnev – the only rider to test positive during the 2011 Tour de France – escaped a sanction Tuesday when the Russian cycling federation only fined him and issued a warning.
The Russian cycling federation (FVSR) handed down a fine of 1,500 Swiss francs and a warning to Kolobnev, who tested positive for a banned diuretic during the Tour’s fourth stage.
Kolobnev has insisted that he was not doping when hydroclorotiazide (HCT) was detected in his system in a post-stage control in stage 4 at the Tour. Kolobnev argued that he did not intentionally take the substance.
Reuters reported that the Russian federation opted not to ban Kolobnev after taking into “account extenuating circumstances,” and said they will now pass the case to the UCI.
The UCI, along with the World Anti-Doping Agency, have the right to appeal the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
HCT is listed on WADA’s banned list as a “specified substance,” or one that is “more susceptible to a credible, non-doping explanation,” WADA’s website reads.