CYCLING
THE COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT DISMISSES AN APPEAL BY MIGUEL ANGEL LÓPEZ AGAINST FOUR YEAR DOPING BAN
Lausanne, 7 May 2025 - The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed an appeal by professional cyclist Miguel Angel López (Mr López) against the Union Cycliste International (UCI), concerning a four-year period of ineligibility for an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV).
Mr López appealed to CAS against the decision by the UCI Anti-Doping Tribunal on 29 May 2024 which found that the rider had committed an ADRV for possession and use of a prohibited substance during the Giro d’Italia 2022 Road Race and imposed a period of ineligibility of four years. The prohibited substance at issue in this appeal is Menotropin, a non-specified substance of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) Prohibited List (class S2.2.1).
A hybrid CAS hearing took place on the 21 November 2024 where the Panel found that:
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Mr López was in possession of Menotropin in violation of the UCI Anti-Doping Rules (ADR Art. 2.6) and took delivery of the substance sometime between 1 May and 5 May 2022.
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Mr López suffered swelling in his leg just before the start of the Giro d’Italia 2022 and his doctor proceeded on the assumed basis that Mr López had used Menotropin and that it was the cause of the swelling.
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Mr López used the substance sometime between 1 May and 5 May 2022.
The Panel is comfortably satisfied that UCI has discharged its burden of proof and unanimously ruled that Mr López possessed a prohibited substance in violation of the UCI ADR (Art. 2.6) and used a prohibited substance in violation of the UCI ADR (Art. 2.2).
The Appeal filed by Mr López is dismissed and the decision issued by the UCI is fully upheld. Mr López remains suspended for a period of ineligibility of four years, commencing on 25 July 2023.
This document is an unofficial summary for media use. Unless Parties request confidentiality, a full Award with reasons will be made available on the CAS website in due course.
For further information related to the CAS activity and procedures in general, please contact either Matthieu Reeb, CAS Director General, or Vanessa Tracey, Communications Officer. Palais de Beaulieu, av. Bergières 10, 1004 Lausanne, Switzerland.
