IOC rules bar 400-champ Merritt from London Games

Lausanne, Switzerland: The IOC says Lashawn Merritt is ineligible to defend his Olympic 400-meter title at the 2012 London Games, even though his doping ban ends a year earlier.

The American runner received a 21-month suspension from U.S. arbitrators Monday for using a banned substance found in an over-the-counter male enhancement product. Lausanne, Switzerland: The IOC says Lashawn Merritt is ineligible to defend his Olympic 400-meter title at the 2012 London Games, even though his doping ban ends a year earlier. The American runner received a 21-month suspension from U.S. arbitrators Monday for using a banned substance found in an over-the-counter male enhancement product. The ban expires in July 2011, leaving Merritt eligible to compete in the world championships in South Korea in August. But the International Olympic Committee reiterated Tuesday that its rules will keep Merritt out of the London Olympics. Under a rule adopted in 2008, any athlete suspended for more than six months is automatically banned from the next Olympics. The IOC says "this rule is still valid and applies to all athletes." Bureau Report