DRUGS TEST SCANDAL: Further mystery surrounded the cases of the Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Ekaterini Thanou after it emerged last night that they were unavailable for drugs tests on at least four occasions during the three weeks leading up to the Games.

The Olympic 200-metre champion and 100-metre silver medallist face being expelled from the games at a disciplinary hearing here today and could also face a criminal prosecution after the Greek police announced they will launch an investigation into their alleged motorcycle crash.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee temporarily suspended Kenteris and Thanou at a special meeting on Saturday but did not withdraw them from the games, against the wishes of its president, Lambis Nikolaou. He was defeated five to one in a vote - a decision that left the International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge deeply frustrated that the saga would drag on for at least another two days.

The case may drag on even longer if Kenteris and Thanou ask for a further delay to give them more time to recover from their alleged injuries.

The athletes are on intravenous drips and "under these conditions, it's impossible for them to give interviews," their lawyer Michalis Dimitrakopoulos said.

"I don't know if they'll be at the hearing tomorrow. The doctors will decide that . . . If the doctors allow it, of course they will appear."

The IOC, aware of the sensitive nature of the case and keen not to upset public opinion, are expected to give them more time if they request it.

But more details about the number of occasions Kenteris and Thanou were unavailable for random out-of-competition tests emerged last night, further weakening their cases.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) revealed they tried to test them in Tel Aviv, Israel, on July 28th but they were not available.

The IOC, who take over jurisdiction for drug testing during the period of the Olympics, then tried to test them twice in Chicago, on August 10th and 11th, after the pair told them they would be in America until August 23rd.

But they were again not at the address they had provided to officials. It has since been claimed they had by then relocated to Germany.

Kenteris and Thanou were unavailable again at 6.15 p.m. last Thursday, just hours after checking into the Olympic village. It is that failure to appear that set in motion the extraordinary sequence of events that have overshadowed the games.

The IOC has a rule that disqualifies from the games any athlete unavailable for tests on two occasions. The IAAF rule requires three strikes and out.

"We will have to wait and see what the exact reason was for not being there for the test," said Nick Davies, spokesman for the IAAF.

"At this point we are waiting for the conclusion of the IOC disciplinary panel. It's not appropriate to comment until then."

In an unusual development, the IAAF also revealed they had tested Kenteris on three occasions during 2003 and twice in the last three months.

But, unfortunately, the figures raised just as many questions as they answered. The biggest of which was why one of the sport's most successful athletes was not tested at all between April 5th and November 15th 2003, especially after the Greeks had been warned when they were training in Qatar even though they had told the IAAF they were in Crete.

Police are investigating the alleged traffic accident, including an initial statement by Kenteris and Thanou that an unidentified passer-by drove them to the hospital.

Investigators so far have failed to find the driver or any signs that a crash took place and officers who canvassed the neighbourhood were unable to locate witnesses.

Dimitris Papangelopoulos, the senior judge of the Court of First Instant, has requested evidence relating to the case. After reviewing the evidence, he is expected to announce today whether the courts will intervene. But Dimitrakopoulos rejected any suggestion that the crash was suspicious. "The accident was real," he said.

"Nobody can doubt it. No serious person, anywhere in the world, can support the idea that our prime minister, our health minister and the top doctors of this hospital are treating and protecting people who have nothing wrong with them.

"Whoever supports this idea is a person of bad faith.