Belgian stuck in suspension purgatory sees similarities between his case and Contador’s
The never-ending saga of the Iljo Keisse case is threatening to never end. In one month’s time, it will be two years since the Belgian track star tested positive for HCT and cathine at his home Gent Six. Still, the case drags on. On Friday, a decision in Keisse’s case was pushed back yet again.
If anyone is qualified to talk about long, drawn out court cases, Iljo Keisse is your man. While everyone around the Alberto Contador case professes for a desire for a quick resolution, you can be sure that unless the case is dropped and Contador is cleared entirely, it will be a long, painful, ugly affair. Keisse sees some similarities in the positions of the two riders, even though at first glance they look entirely different.
“The two things are hard to compare, but if Contador says that it comes from food contamination and the quantities are so small that they are not performance enhancing, then there are similarities,” said the battered rider in a conversation with Belga.
Even if Contador is cleared, Keisse isn’t hopeful that Contador would be allowed to walk free. After all, Keisse proved his case well enough to be acquitted over a year ago, and yet, one year on, he finds himself back on the sidelines.
“If I compare his case to mine, then it appears that the UCI and WADA have already been very mild. I paid for everything, and I finally proved where [the cathine and HCT] came from, and it wasn’t performance enhancing. I was then acquitted, but then [WADA] appealed, and I was once again suspended.”
Keisse recognizes the innate difference between himself and Contador though – one is krill in a very big pond, whilst the other is akin to a blue whale. Of course the two will be treated differently, which is somewhat frustrating, but perhaps could lead to a slackening of the ropes around the rider’s necks in the future.
“With Contador, they say that further research will be done to come to a correct conclusion. This is working with two sizes and two weights. But who am I? Maybe it’s good that something really big like this happens. Maybe that will be cause for chance. For me, it is too late though, because I’ve been at this for so long.”
In the end, whether Contador was a victim of contaminated meat, guilty of blood transfusions, or something completely different, Keisse isn’t too hopeful for the three-time Tour de France winner.
“I wish him luck, because it is a difficult road. I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. He’ll have more resources that I, and as I said, the UCI and WADA are being very mild, but I think WADA will apply its regulations very strictly. If they respect what they have done to riders like me, then they will not let other riders go.”
Keisse makes some solid points and draws an interesting parallel between the two situations. The biggest question, if the coming case goes in favor of Alberto Contador, would be: what of Fuyu Li? The RadioShack rider tested positive in similar quantities earlier this year and was forgotten almost as soon as he was mentioned, but the explosive Contador case suddenly brings Li back into the picture – because like Keisse, what happens if Contador gets off? The WADA policy has been – your fault or not, the substance was in your body = suspension.
A quick run down of the saga: Keisse tests positive in November of 2008 at the Gent Six. After an extended battle, he is cleared and allowed to return to racing almost one year later, on November 2, 2009. Keisse races a successful Six Day season, then begins 2010 with Patrick Lefevere’s QuickStep team. His season is a flop due to injury and generally just bad luck, but it gets even worse when WADA appeals to the CAS, who rule in favor of WADA, and Keisse’s two year ban is reinstated to its full two years. Of course, Keisse isn’t too keen on leaving the sport again, so he begins his appeal process anew. Unfortunately for Keisse and his chances of racing in 2010, his case is postponed twice, bringing us to recent times.
Recently, after the two postponements, the presiding judge in the case declined jurisdiction and cast Keisse further adrift. Keisse was forced to go even higher to his final bastion of hope – the Belgian Court of Appeals. This is Keisse’s final chance – he either needs a favorable ruling in this court, or he will certainly be sitting out the rest of his sentence, right or wrong.