RASMUSSEN TWO-YEAR BAN REMAINS IN FORCE

The Court of Arbitration for Sport [CAS] has dismissed an appeal by Michael Rasmussen against his ban for two years. The former Tour de France leader will now remain suspended until July 25th 2009.

CAS said in a statement that Rasmussen?s appeal was rejected because he had broken two articles of the UCI?s anti-doping code.

Ramussen broke these two articles, CAS said by failing to announce his new location to the UCI on April 6th 2007, which prevented the Danish Anti-Doping Agency from carrying out an anti-doping test.

He also failed to transmit information about his whereabouts in June 2007, on one occasion intentionally, and missing another anti-doping test as a result.

Rasmussen was kicked out of his team, Rabobank, whilst leading the Tour in 2007 and poised to win because of failing to provide accurate information about his whereabouts. He later acknowledged he lied, but claimed that his team knew he was in Italy and France.

Rasmussen is resident in Monaco, and the federation there banned him for two years for these faults. Rasmussen appealed, but the CAS decision means he cannot take part in the Tour de France 2009 - which starts in Monaco this July.

The bald-headed climber is reported to be considering a comeback, targetting the Tour of Spain this September.

Whether any team will actually sign the 34-year-old after this latest setback, though, is another story.