Former Australia swimmer Ian Thorpe has dropped his defamation case against the publishers of a French newspaper that reported he returned an irregular doping test in 2006.
Thorpe's lawyer Tony O'Reilly said in a statement that his client was dropping the case because the French newspaper L'Equipeand a journalist had failed to show up in court.
"In these circumstances, Ian has decided not to pursue the proceedings as he sees little point in obtaining a verdict in the absence of (the defendants)," O'Reilly told reporters outside the court.
Thorpe, a multiple world and Olympic champion, was cleared of an doping offences after a random drug test taken before his retirement in 2006 showed slightly elevated levels of a naturally-occurring hormone.
Although there was never a suggestion Thorpe had broken any rules, he commenced defamation proceedings against the paper and the journalist who wrote the story, arguing that the publicity from the case had tarnished his reputation and the leaking of the test results was a breach of confidentiality.