LAUSANNE, Switzerland - Olympic chief Jacques Rogge said yesterday that he has asked the World Anti-doping Agency to investigate why doping bans imposed on two Beijing Olympic medallists had been thrown out.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland - Olympic chief Jacques Rogge said yesterday that he has asked the World Anti-doping Agency to investigate why doping bans imposed on two Beijing Olympic medallists had been thrown out.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport earlier this month upheld appeals by Belarus hammer throwers Vadim Deviatovskiy and Ivan Tsikhan against sanctions imposed on them after they failed doping tests at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

The court ordered the International Olympic Committee to restore the silver and bronze medals the two athletes won due to technical irregularities by the laboratory in China that carried out the tests.

"It goes without saying that the IOC will respect the decision of the court of arbitration," Rogge said.

However, IOC medical and legal teams were studying the decision. - Sapa-AFP