PARIS — Alberto Contador might as well be riding this year’s Tour de France with an asterisk emblazoned on his jersey.

The small print would say: Doping appeal Aug. 1-3 before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The three-time Tour champion’s hearing a week after the race ends will loom in the background as cycling’s showcase event plays out against the familiar scenes of rolling countryside and mountains.

Bradley Wiggins, who recently won the Criterium du Dauphine to position himself as a credible rival to Contador, said the defending champion’s presence next month on the snaking roads of France is bad for the sport.

“Personally, I am happy that he is there as it means that Saxo Bank will be doing everything to help him win,” Wiggins said referring to Contador’s team. “Sports-wise, though, it is not a good thing that a bloke who tested positive four times is in the race. It is also bad for all those teams that are fighting to be clean.”

Contador tested positive for the banned anabolic agent clenbuterol on the second rest day of the 2010 Tour and traces of the drug were found in tests over the next three days.