British cyclist Chris Froome hires lawyer to defend him against doping allegations

British cyclist Chris Froome, who is being investigated for alleged doping with salbutamol during the last Vuelta a España, has hired British lawyer Mike Morgan for his defense. Morgan has previously worked with Spanish cyclist Alberto Contador, Colombian cyclist Sergio Henao, and Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova, among other athletes.

According to British media reports, Froome has entrusted his defense to Mike Morgan's law firm in London, which has extensive experience in doping-related cases and was named Sports Lawyer of the Year at the 2017 Who's Who Awards.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) is demanding that Froome justifies the presence of 2,000 nanograms of salbutamol per milliliter in his urine, double the limit set by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), in a doping control test conducted during the last Vuelta a España, which he won.

Tennis players Maria Sharapova and Marin Cilic, Jamaican athlete Veronica Campbell-Brown, and Senegalese football player Mamadou Sakho have also been defended by Mike Morgan in doping cases, as well as former President of the Asian Football Confederation Mohamed Bin Hammam, who was banned for life by FIFA's Ethics Committee in 2011.

Morgan's law firm succeeded in preventing any sanctions against Sergio Henao, Froome's teammate, for abnormalities detected in his biological passport.

On the other hand, they could not prevent Belgian Johan Bruyneel, former sports director of Lance Armstrong's US Postal team, from being suspended for ten years due to his involvement in the systematic doping carried out by the team.

In 2011, Mike Morgan also collaborated with Spanish lawyer Andy Ramos in Alberto Contador's appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against his positive test for clenbuterol in the 2012 Tour de France. The appeal was dismissed, resulting in Contador being stripped of his title and serving a two-year ban.

If found guilty, Froome risks being suspended for two years and losing his victory in the Vuelta, which would then go to Italian cyclist Vincenzo Nibali, who finished second this year.