Quintana disqualified from Tour de France for drug infringement

Nairo Quintana has been disqualified from the 2022 Tour de France for an in-competiton drug infringement.

The Colombian finished sixth in this year's competition, which was won by Danish rider Jonas Vingegaard.

However, the UCI announced on Wednesday that two samples of Quintana's blood showed traces of tramadol, a banned substance.

The 32-year-old has 10 days to appeal the ruling with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), though he has not been banned from competition as it is a first offence.

Quintana's sixth place in the General Classification was his first top-10 Grand Tour finish since the 2019 Vuelta a Espana, and his best performance in the Tour de France since 2016.

The Arkea-Samsic team announced that Quintana had signed a contract extension until 2025 on Tuesday, though he was not named in their squad for this year's Vuelta a Espana, which starts on Friday.

The team released a statement on Wednesday saying: "The Arkea-Samsic team took note of the notification from the UCI and received by Nairo Quintana informing him of the presence of tramadol in two samples of dried blood collected during the last Tour de France.

"Since March 1, 2019, the UCI medical regulations have provided for the banning of tramadol in competition for medical reasons.

"Furthermore, this violation of the UCI medical regulations does not lead to a suspension for the rider.

"The Arkea-Samsic team will not provide any further comment."