(CNN) -- Reigning Tour de France champion Alberto Contador has been suspended from competitive cycling after it was revealed he tested positive for a banned substance during this year's race.
The Spanish rider, a three-time winner of cycling's showpiece event, had traces of the banned substance clenbuterol in a test sample he gave on July 21 this year.
A statement from the sport's governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) read: "The UCI confirmed today that Spanish rider Alberto Contador returned an adverse analytical finding for clenbuterol.
"The rider, who had already put an end to his cycling season before the result was known, was nevertheless formally and provisionally suspended as is prescribed by the World Anti-Doping Code.
"This result was reported by the WADA accredited laboratory in Cologne to UCI and WADA simultaneously".
CNN
