Suspended Mexican soccer players in “Contador scenario”

Five Mexican national soccer players were suspended from the CONCACAF Gold Cup in the U.S.A. after testing positive for the banned substance clenbuterol. Like Alberto Contador, whose CAS hearing has been moved to early August – permitting him to race in the Tour de France, the players claim that they ate contaminated beef while training for the Gold Cup at Mexico’s High Performance Centre.

Tests conducted on May 21 detected the clenbuterol. The Federation of Mexican Football’s director of national teams Hector Gonzalez said that the players will fly to Los Angeles for another test at UCLA’s certified lab. “We will ask also for the B samples (of the original tests) to be opened and we will await the results,” he added.

Mexico had only 17 players available Thursday for its 5-0 victory over Cuba in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Gold Cup, a tournament played in the U.S.A. and contested by teams from North American, Central American and Caribbean teams, continues until June 25. Canada lost its first match to the hosts.