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Clenbuterol’s patchy doping past

The facts on clenbuterol.

The news sent a shockwave through the 2010 world road cycling championships in Geelong.

Spanish cycling star Alberto Contador had tested positive.

It quickly emerged that Contador’s positive test was on July 21, during a rest day in the Tour de France.

But the banned substance in question had everyone rushing to Google - what exactly was clenbuterol?

Contador was certainly not the first athlete to test positive to the drug, which helps build muscle and burn fat, but he was definitely the most prominent.

It quickly emerged that just 50 picograms of clenbuterol were found in Contador’s sample - cycling’s world governing body the UCI said at the time that was 400 times less than the testing threshold.

Contador immediately blamed the positive test on a contaminated steak he had eaten during the Tour.

After a protracted and messy two-year saga, he was banned for two years and lost the 2010 Tour and 2011 Giro d’Italia titles.

Then in December 2013, the news broke that Australian cycling star Michael Rogers had also tested positive to clenbuterol.

Again, Rogers blamed the positive test on contaminated meat he had eaten, while racing two months earlier in China.

But this time, authorities believed him.

The UCI announced on April 23 last year there was “a significant probability” that contaminated meat caused the positive test.

It was a landmark ruling and Rogers immediately returned to racing.

“Throughout my experience, I was able to gain a little bit of understanding of how complex this has become,” Rogers said of his successful appeal.

“I can see it from both sides of the fence. It is so complicated.

“I would not claim I have a good understanding of it.

“I have a very small understanding.”

Now Collingwood players Lachie Keeffe and Josh Thomas have tested positive to clenbuterol.

Authorities have only tested the AFL players’ A samples and there are very few details of what has happened.

But Collingwood officials have undoubtedly Googled “clenbuterol“ and know all about what happened to Contador and Rogers.