Sagan's Tour De France ban upheld by CAS
July 6, 2017
Sport's highest court has rejected Peter Sagan's appeal to be allowed back into the Tour de France.
World champion Sagan was disqualified by the International Union of Cyclists (UCI) following a stage four collision with Mark Cavendish in which the Slovak was adjudged to have elbowed the Briton into the barriers during the final sprint and causing him to fracture his shoulder.
German cycling team Bora-hansgrohe had lodged an official appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), but in a short statement on Thursday the court said it rejected the appeal and that Sagan "remains disqualified from the 2017 Tour de France."
The team insisted that Sagan "did not cause, let alone deliberately, the fall of Mark Cavendish". It said "Sagan stayed on his line and could not see Cavendish on the right side."
An initial appeal was rejected by the UCI and Bora-hansgrohe had hoped the CAS would overturn the decision and allow the 27-year-old to re-enter the race, arguing that Sagan wasn't given a chance to present his version of events.
Official statement
The race jury had already ruled that Sagan deliberately extended his elbow to prevent Cavendish from passing him, "seriously endangering other riders," but the Slovak and his team maintain that the Briton was attempting to fit through a gap between Sagan and the barrier which was too small. They argue that Sagan only extended his elbow to maintain his balance and that it was Cavendish and not Sagan who veered from their course.
"Both the team and Peter Sagan are of the opinion that Peter did not cause Mark Cavendish's fallin the final 200m of the fourth stage - let alone deliberately," they said in a statement on Thursday.
mf/mds (AP/SID)