OLYMPICS 19 DAYS TO THE GAMES : Drug Ban Lifted for Australian Coach

Banned Coach Scott Volkers was ecstatic with a decision that will let him be at poolside with his Australian swimmers at the Olympics.

Volkers had a two-year suspension by FINA, swimming’s world governing body, reduced from one year to seven months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, meaning he is free to begin coaching in international swimming events starting today.

Volkers was originally suspended for two years by FINA after one of his swimmers, Samantha Riley, tested positive for the prohibited substance propoxyphene metabolite at a meet in Rio de Janiero last November.

Volkers appealed FINA’s decision to the court in May, claiming he had given the banned substance to Riley by mistake. The court confirmed Volkers’ guilt, but shortened the suspension, which began Dec. 1, 1995, by five months.