A new hearing for Hamilton

LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Olympic champion cyclist Tyler Hamilton of Marblehead, Mass., will have another hearing Jan. 10 in Denver on his appeal of his blood-doping suspension.

The rider's initial hearing in September was suspended because not all the evidence could be presented. He has denied any doping violation and has criticized the testing methods of cycling's international governing body. Hamilton was suspended April 18 by the independent American Arbitration Association.

Deliberations may last a few weeks.

Hamilton tested positive during the Spanish Vuelta in September 2004, a month after he won a gold medal in the time trial at the Athens Olympics. His initial blood sample in Athens also tested positive, but that case was dropped because his backup sample was mistakenly frozen.

This was the first case to question the test to detect the presence of someone else's red blood cells. A blood transfusion can increase endurance by providing extra oxygen-carrying red blood cells.