Alessandro Petacchi, charged with doping by the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI), will learn his fate on July 24.

The 33-year-old sprinter will be handed his punishment by the disciplinary commission of the Italian Cycling Federation (FCI).

CONI's anti-doping prosecutor Ettore Torri, who charged Petacchi with doping on Wednesday, has requested the FCI ban him from cycling for a year.

Petacchi, who had been provisionally suspended by his Milram team last week, has been replaced by Ukrainian Andriy Grivko for the Tour de France, which gets underway in London on Saturday.

Petacchi tested positive after the third of his five stage wins at the Giro d'Italia. He also won the points jersey at the Giro.

The urine sample he gave at Pinerolo on May 23 showed an unusually high level of salbutamol, a substance primarily used to treat asthma.

Salbutamol is a banned substance, but riders suffering from asthma are allowed restricted use of the drug if they can provide a medical certificate. Petacchi has such a certificate, having suffered from asthma for many years.

The World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited list notes, however, that riders whose urine samples show a concentration of Salbutamol greater than 1000 nanograms per milliliter must prove that the elevated level is a result of normal therapeutic use. If a rider with a Therapeutic Use Exemption produces a level lower than 1000 ng/mL the burden of proof falls to anti-doping authorities, if they wish to show a doping violation.

Petacchi produced a level higher than the upper limit and must now show that he did not take the drug orally or inject it and that his use of the inhaler was in keeping with its normal therapeutic use.

Studies have shown that in addition to aiding in the treatment of asthma, salbutamol can be used to increase an athlete’s anaerobic power. According to study results, peak power appeared significantly earlier and was noticeably increased after Salbutamol use.

Petacchi's urine sample taken at Pinerolo was the only one of the five doping tests he gave that showed an excessive amount of the drug.

Last month Petacchi's fellow Italian Ivan Basso, one of the favorites for the Tour de France, was given a two-year ban for his involvement in the Operación Puerto blood-doping scandal.

Petacchi, who did not compete in last year's Tour de France because of a knee injury, won four stages in the 2003 race.