Hardy beats WADA in court case

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP): A court ruled in favour of American swimmer Jessica Hardy yesterday, rejecting the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appeal to extend her doping ban.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismissed WADA's appeal to lengthen the ban from one to two years, but offered no ruling on whether Hardy should be allowed to compete at the 2012 London Olympics.

Hardy tested positive for clenbuterol at the US Olympic trials in July 2008 and missed the Beijing Games.

The CAS panel of three lawyers accepted she was not to blame for the failed test and had unknowingly taken the banned anabolic agent in a contaminated food supplement.

one-year ban

Hardy served a one-year ban and set several breaststroke world records after returning to swimming last year.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) must now decide whether to apply a rule which bars athletes from the next Olympics if they serve a doping ban of at least six months.

Hardy's legal team had asked CAS to rule on her Olympic status at a hearing held in New York in March.

"The CAS Panel rejected the request to have the IOC joined in the arbitration procedure and did not issue any opinion on the applicability of Rule 45 of the Olympic Charter," the court said in a statement.

The IOC said yesterday that the rule took effect on July 1, 2008 - three days before Hardy provided the sample which led to the failed test.

WADA said it accepted the CAS ruling.