Contador considers appeal over doping ban

Alberto Contador is considering appealing against the two-year ban he was handed by Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) for failing a dope test during his victorious 2010 Tour de France campaign.

The 29-year-old Spaniard, who was stripped of the Tour title by CAS in its ruling published on Monday, told a packed news conference on Tuesday that he was innocent and planned to return to competition when the retroactive ban ends in August.

"My lawyers are examining the possibilities and as I have said before we have to fight to the end," Contador said when asked if he would appeal Lausanne-based CAS's decision in the Swiss federal court, which he must do within 30 days.

"With the sentence in my hand the sensation I still feel is that I am innocent. I did not dope myself.

"I will continue in cycling. I will continue to do so in a clean way as I have all my life. And I know that will make me stronger in the future."

Contador, who was speaking at a hotel in his home town of Pinto near Madrid, tested positive for the banned anabolic agent clenbuterol during the 2010 Tour.

He won the Tour in 2007, 2009 and 2010 and is widely regarded as the greatest cyclist of his generation.