Swiss court: Pechstein allowed to skate in Salt Lake City (Roundup)

By Frank Thomas Dec 8, 2009, 13:26 GMT

Hamburg - German speed skater Claudia Pechstein has been allowed by the highest Swiss court to compete in an upcoming World Cup meet in Salt Lake City despite a doping ban.

Pechstein's manager Ralf Grengel confirmed to the German Press Agency dpa that the Federal Tribunal (SFT) granted an urgent request by Pechstein who is fighting a two-year ban, imposed by the ruling skating body ISU and confirmed on November 25 by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Pechstein, 37, will skate in the 3,000 metres race on Friday and aims to finish in the top eight to qualify for the Vancouver Olympics in February.

The injunction applies only for the Salt Lake City race. A final ruling on Pechstein's appeal is to be made by the SFT at a later stage, but likely before the February 12-28 Games. The case is before a court in Switzerland because the CAS is based there.

'We wanted to give Claudia a last chance to qualify for the Olympics. But this is only small step. Only the main hearing will decide whether she can really compete at the Olympics and has her ban lifted,' said Pechstein's lawyer Simon Bergmann.

Pechstein said after hearing the news during training: 'It is great to know that all the training was worth it and that I will now get the chance to qualify for the Olympics.'

Pechstein is Germany's most decorated winter Olympian with five gold medals, two silver and two bronze medals. She also has six world titles.

She was banned for abnormally high levels of reticulocytes (immature red blood cells) in several blood tests including the allround world championships in Norway in February.

Pechstein is the first top athlete to be banned through blood screening results for a biological passport and not a positive doping test.

Her case is seen as a precedent for other federations who also have biological passports for their athletes, such as cycling, Nordic skiing and athletics.

Pechstein and her lawyers will file the official appeal against the CAS ruling to the SFT early next year, mainly citing procedural errors by the CAS judges.

German Olympic committee (DOSB) supremo Thomas Bach said that 'we respect the injunction and hope for a final verdict soon.' The DOSB has the final domestic saying in the nomination of athletes for Olympic Games.

The CAS did not want to comment, with secretary general Matthieu Reeb saying: 'The CAS has not been invited by the Swiss Federal Tribunal to express its opinion with respect to the urgent request filed by Ms Pechstein to compete in the ISU event of this week-end.

'This is the normal practice of the SFT in urgent situations. In any event, the CAS will wait to know the grounds of Ms Pechstein9s appeal before expressing any opinion thereon,' he said.