Austria's national anti-doping agency has provisionally suspended the 2002 Olympic cross-country ski champion Christian Hoffmann for his alleged involvement in blood doping.
NADA said Hoffmann has been banned from all competitions with immediate effect until a hearing by the agency's disciplinary committee has taken place, with Hoffmann's attorney Hans-Moritz Pott saying it would take place on January 29.
That would mean that Hoffmann, who won gold in the 30-kilometre race at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games, won't be able to qualify for the Olympics in Vancouver.
Hoffmann has never tested positive, but prosecutors in Austria have been investigating possible blood doping by him and other athletes since May.
