Alberto Contador will appeal the provisional one-year ban handed to him by the Spanish Cycling Federation.
“I do not agree with the resolution at all,” Contador told a press conference on Friday. “I’ll appeal and defend myself to the last.”
The Spaniard tested positive for clenbuterol on the second rest day of the 2010 Tour de France, four days before winning his third title after previous victories in 2007 and 2009.
Contador has protested his innocence since the failed test was revealed, insisting it came as a result of ingesting contaminated meat.
Clenbuterol, a muscle-building and weight-loss drug, is illegally used by farmers on cattle.