CAS to rule on Greek sprinters during Turin Games

Greek sprinters Costas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou may hear the Court of Arbitration for Sport's final ruling on their alleged doping violations at the Athens Olympics during next month's Winter Games.

The two athletes caused the biggest doping sensation since Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson tested positive for steroids at the 1988 Seoul Olympics when they failed to show up for a drugs test hours before the start of the Athens Games.

The CAS hearing is set for February 22-23, towards the end of the February 10-26 Winter Olympics in Turin, CAS said on its website.

The popular athletes were acquitted of any wrongdoing by a Greek disciplinary committee last year but the decision enraged the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which filed an appeal with the CAS.

The Lausanne-based court met last October but despite a marathon 10-hour hearing said it needed more time to wrap up proceedings.

Kenteris, a 200m gold medallist at the 2000 Sydney Games, and Thanou, who won a 100m silver medal at the same Olympics, are banned pending the CAS ruling. The athletes have not raced since the spring of 2004 and face a maximum two-year ban.