Contador hearing expected in June

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has named a three-man panel to hear Alberto Contador's doping case and expects a verdict before July's Tour de France.

Cas has chosen Israeli lawyer Efraim Barak to chair the panel, which includes Quentin Byrne-Sutton of Switzerland and Germany's Ulrich Haas.

Contador was cleared by the Spanish Cycling Federation of a positive clenbuterol test during the 2010 Tour.

The International Cycling Union and World Anti-Doping Agency have appealed.

Cas has not fixed a date to hear the case but said in a statement: "The written proceedings in this matter are likely to be concluded at the end of May.

"The Cas envisages to hold a hearing in June, which would allow the settlement of the dispute before the end of June."

Under Cas regulations, each party in a dispute can choose an arbitrator to work with the court-appointed chairman.

Contador's legal team selected Haas, while the UCI and Wada picked Byrne-Sutton.

The Spaniard can ride until Cas hears the case, but he faces a possible two-year ban and being stripped of his 2010 Tour de France victory if the Lausanne-based court finds against him.

Should Cas rule against Wada and the UCI, the 28-year-old will be free to defend his title; the 2011 race starts on 2 July.

Contador tested positive for the banned drug clenbuterol - he had minute traces of the drug in his urine samples - days before his third Tour de France win, in July 2010.

Clenbuterol, similar to the asthma drug salbutamol, is used to treat breathing disorders as a decongestant and bronchodilator. It causes an increase in aerobic capacity, blood pressure and oxygen transportation, and speeds the rate at which fats are burned.

The Spanish federation accepted Contador's explanation that he had inadvertently consumed the drug in contaminated beef.

The World Anti-Doping Agency regards clenbuterol as a zero-tolerance drug, though its rules allow athletes to escape a sanction if they prove "no fault or negligence" on their part.

The UCI announced last September that Contador was provisionally suspended and asked the Spanish federation to investigate.

The federation's disciplinary committee originally proposed a one-year ban for Contador in January 2011, but his legal team then offered new evidence and he was cleared to race three weeks later.

Days before the decision, Spain's Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, had said that there was "no legal reason to justify sanctioning Contador".

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