According to the Court of Arbitration for Sport website, Floyd Landis filed his appeal on Oct. 11, so 10 Speed isn’t quite sure why  The Associated Press is reporting this as news, though it might be that it just got its hands on the brief filed by Landis’ attorneys.

Having read the majority and minority opinions of Landis’ appeal of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency finding against him, 10 Speed thinks Landis has a chance if the CAS arbitrator’s apply any commonsense to the proceeding. The French lab’s work was so fraught with errors, including mislabeled specimens, that it’s difficult to say conclusively whether tests were done on Landis sample, let alone that the tests were done properly.

A  Landis victory not only would show that he was Richard Kimbled but that the anti-doping system needs a major overhaul. The  system  seems to have begun with well-meaning people  intent on recapturing the integrity of athletic competition but lately it seems to have become  overrun by overzealous witchhunters who have limited accountability.

In any event, here’s the latest from the AP wire …

Landis files appeal with Court of Arbitration for Sport

By EDDIE PELLS

AP National Writer

Floyd Landis filed his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Tuesday, setting in motion his last chance to regain the 2006 Tour de France title that was stripped because of a positive doping test.

Landis, who lost his arbitration hearing in September, promised last month that he would appeal the decision to CAS, which likely will hear the case early next year.

The introduction to the 90-page brief Landis’ attorneys submitted to CAS said Landis fully supports ongoing efforts to eradicate doping in cycling.

“However, to wrongly strip a champion of his victory due to a flawed test is much worse than to have an athlete cheat his way to victory,” the introduction read. “To ensure a fair process and to protect against the travesty of wrongfully convicting a person for an act he or she did not commit, the anti-doping system must strike an adequate balance between the need for accuracy and reliability of laboratory test results and fairness in sports.”

Last month, a panel sponsored by the American Arbitration Association ruled against Landis, upholding the results of a test that showed he used synthetic testosterone to fuel his spectacular comeback Tour victory. That decision meant Landis had to forfeit his title and is subject to a two-year ban, retroactive to Jan. 30.

By a 2-1 decision, the arbitrators ruled against Landis even though the majority found numerous problems with procedures followed at the French lab that analyzed his urine.

Travis Tygart, the CEO of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency that prosecuted the case, said he expected the brief to be filed.

“I don’t really have any comment on it,” he said. “It’s a right afforded them under the rules, and they’ve elected to go forward.”

Landis’ first appeal was estimated to cost around $2 million. The hearing in front of CAS likely would reach a six-figure cost, though not into the millions because much of the evidence already has been established and heard.

Attorney Maurice Suh again will represent Landis. The case is expected to be heard behind closed doors in Lausanne, Switzerland. The arbitration hearing was held in public — part of Landis’ attempt to shine a light on an anti-doping hearing process that he claims is flawed.

“We welcome the opportunity to present this case to CAS,” Suh said. “We will prove, once again, that the French laboratory’s work violated numerous rules and proper procedure, rendering its results meaningless and inaccurate. We are optimistic that CAS will agree, and stop the miscarriage of justice that resulted from the earlier arbitration proceeding.”

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