Kazakhstan's flagship sponsorship project, the Astana cycling team, is in the not-so-glamorous spotlight once again after news media learned on September 29 that this year's Tour de France winner Alberto Contador tested positive for a banned substance late in the race.
Contador, whose controversial July win was a tarnished blessing for Astana, was tested on July 21, and the sample revealed traces of the banned steroid clenbuterol. At a press conference in his Spanish hometown on September 30, the three-time Tour winner proclaimed his innocence and said that the positive result was due to his having eaten contaminated meat from Spain. The International Cycling Union has provisionally suspended Contador from the sport while the case is investigated.
Kazakhstan's state asset holding company Samruk-Kazyna supports Team Astana, a PR vehicle for the country on the world stage. But cycling -- with its regular doping scandals -- is a dangerous sport for promoting Kazakhstan's image abroad. In 2007, Kazakhstan's top rider Alexandre Vinokourov was kicked out of the Tour de France along with the whole Astana team after he tested positive for doping.
Paul Bartlett is a journalist based in Almaty.
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