American Merritt was suspended for 21 months by an American Arbitration Association last year for testing positive for banned substances he said were in a male enhancement product. Under a rule introduced in 2008 by the IOC, any athlete banned for six months or more is ruled out of the next Olympics although US arbitrators have said this went against the World Anti-Doping Agency code. "The rule stands," IOC Vice-President Thomas Bach saod. "The IOC has the right to put in conditions for participation.”
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