Britain seeks CAS ruling on Olympic doping ban

The British Olympic Association (BOA) will seek a hearing before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to determine the legality of its eligibility rule which bans athletes who have served drugs bans from competing at future Olympic Games.

The lifetime ban means sprinter Dwain Chambers and cyclist David Millar will not be able to compete at next year's London Games.

In a statement on Wednesday, the BOA said the association wanted to "address the enforceability of its selection policy".

Its decision follows a successful appeal to CAS by American Olympic 400 metres champion LaShawn Merritt against an International Olympic Committee rule banning athletes from the Games which immediately follow a doping ban of more than six months.

Wednesday's statement, released after a meeting of the BOA's executive board, said the CAS decision had raised questions about the enforceability of the board's selection policy.

It also said the BOA had received correspondence from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) saying the bylaw did not comply with the WADA code.

"Of course, the BOA strongly disagrees," the statement said.

"In light of this development, at a meeting today the BOA Board of Directors agreed to inform WADA that it will vigorously defend the interests of clean athletes by seeking a hearing before the CAS to address the enforceability of its selection policy, and bring clarity and closure to this issue."