Ohuruogu Given All-clear to Compete in the Olympics

Christine Ohuruogu today won her appeal against a lifetime Olympic ban for missing three out-of-competition drugs tests. The 23-year-old Londoner took her case to a Sports Dispute Resolutions Panel and successfully overturned a British Olympic Association bylaw precluding athletes found guilty of drug-test offenses from competing in future Games.

Ohuruogu, who in August sensationally won the 400 meters world championship title just three weeks after completing a one-year suspension, is now clear to compete in Beijing next year.

"The appeals panel unanimously agreed that the written evidence supplemented by the answers given by both parties at the oral hearing provided the necessary information to take an early decision in Christine Ohuruogu's appeal," read a BOA statement.

"It was agreed that any delay in making the decision would not be in the interests of any of the involved parties. The panel decided that Christine Ohuruogu's appeal had been successful due to significant mitigating circumstances."

Further information regarding the panel's reasoning will be made available at a later date but the BOA's chief executive Simon Clegg said they were happy to be able to welcome Ohuruogu into the team for Beijing. "The BOA will now be pleased to welcome Christine Ohuruogu as part of Team GB in Beijing next year in the event of her successful nomination by UK Athletics," he said.

Clegg also defended the procedures that led to the ban being imposed in the first place. "The BOA and the panel both stress that no advance notice out of competition testing is a fundamental part of ensuring an effective fight against doping in sport," he added. "Athletes must be fully aware of their obligations to keep their whereabouts information up to date at all times and must ensure that they are available for testing at the designated times and places."