LIZZY BANKS has said she will end her professional cycling career after having her life “torn apart for nothing” in a 10-month case which concluded with her being found at “no fault or negligence” and without sanction for a positive doping test.

The 33-year-old, who has ridden for Great Britain at the World Championships and was competing for WorldTour team EF Education-Tibco-SVB when she was notified of the result last July, has published a lengthy blog post about an ordeal which she says has cost her around £40,000.

Last month, UK Anti-Doping found that Banks held “no fault or negligence” for traces of chlortalidone and formoterol — a decision Banks called a “landmark case” as it was the first such ruling in a case where the athlete did not specifically identify the exact source of contamination.