Hearing on IAAF's appeal on Ind athletes held

New Delhi: The hearing on the appeal by IAAF in the case involving six Indian women quartermilers, including Asian Games double gold medallist Ashwini Akkunji, was held at the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) at the headquarters at Lausanne, Switzerland today.

"Some athletes attended the hearing by a teleconference instead of travelling to switzerland," sources in the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) said.

"The decision on the case is expected in a few days," he added.

Athletics was hit by the steroid doping scandal that involved six top quartermilers, including Akkunji and her three 4X400m relay quartet members -- Sini Jose, Mandeep Kaur and Manjeet Kaur -- who were banned for one year by the NADA.

Their ban ended just before the Olympic qualification period but the faint hopes of appearing in the London Games were dashed after the IAAF appealed to the CAS in Switzerland to increase their sanction to two years.

The relay quartet won gold in the 2010 Commonwealth Games here and the Asian Games a month later. Akkunji became the toast of the country after she also won the 400m hurdles in Guangzhou, only to be caught for doping later. Manjeet ended her career after she allegedly refused to give samples to NADA officials in Patiala.