The 42-year-old actor is one of the names in the frame for a biopic centring on the disgraced cyclist, who was recently found to have been engaged in a huge doping scandal and stripped of all the titles he won from 1999 to 2005.

Hamilton was a teammate of Lance Armstrong during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France where Armstrong won the Yellow jersey. He was a fellow user of illegal performance-enhancing drugs before becoming a whistleblower after he was caught doping at the Vuelta a España tournament in 2004.

The Secret Race: Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France: Doping, Cover-ups, and Winning at All Costs – which is currently being pitched to Hollywood film bosses – looks inside the world of professional cycling and explores the doping issue surrounding the sport and cancer survivor Armstrong, who has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles.

Damon is to star in upcoming sci-fi movie Elysium next year alongside Jodie Foster and Sharlto Copley.  He is best known for his portrayal of secret agent Jason Bourne in the first three movies in the Bourne film franchise between 2002 and 2007, but he recently ruled himself out of reprising the role again.