Chambers lawyers raise appeal pace

DWAIN Chambers' appeal against his lifetime Olympic suspension will pick up pace in the next few days with the serving of procedural papers for the case to be heard as quickly as possible in the High Court.

Brilliant performances in Biberac an der Reiss on Saturday, when he twice beat the Olympic 100 metres qualifying standard of 10.21 seconds, was the signal for speedy action from his Leeds-based solicitors, Ford & Warren.

Less than five minutes after clocking 10.14 secs in his heat the reformed drugs cheat was on his mobile phone with the good news to lawyer Nick Collins. Chambers, like other athletes who have served doping suspensions, is currently banned for life from representing Team GB because of a 16-year-old British Olympic Association bylaw.

"The legal papers are presently with his barrister and we are anticipating serving them before the end of this week," said Collins.

BOA chairman Lord Colin Moynihan has already insisted "money will be no object" when defending a regulation which is no longer pursued by the remainder of the Olympic movement. It is understood the one-day hearing for Chambers is likely to cost less than £200,000.