Following a last-gasp court appeal in the Netherlands, Belgian track rider Iljo Keisse has secured the go ahead to ride the Six Days of Rotterdam, which begins this evening.
Keisse said yesterday that he was determined to start the race, but was later told that he had no chance of doing so after the UCI communicated with the race organisers. He took a last-gasp court action to try to force his way into the race and, against expectations, this move has been successful.
The Belgian track specialist tested positive for cathine and the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (HCT) after his victory in the 2008 Six Days of Ghent. He was cleared of doping charges by a disciplinary committee of the Belgian Cycling Union in November of last year. Their conclusion was that the cathine was a degradation of pseudo-ephedrine, found in the legal cold treatment Sinutab, while the HCT was likely due to a contaminated dietary supplement.
An appeal by WADA to the Court of Arbitration for Sport was successful in July, reintroducing his two year ban. However Keisse brought this to the Belgian Court of Appeals, won the case, and raced in Ghent and Zurich. The UCI insisted that he was still banned outside Belgium, thus blocking him from competing in Manchester. This was reaffirmed by WADA president John Fahey last month, who said that the ban was a worldwide one.
Keisse appeared to have admitted defeat yesterday, telling Sporza that he had run out of options after the UCI intervened again.
“I don't know what else I can do,” he said. “It's not in my power. I still had some hope that my lawyer would be able to do something, but that didn't happen. The [Rotterdam] Six Days will take place without me.”
That is no longer the case, and he will line out with Dutchman Tim Veldt in this evening’s start of the race.