Mark Richardson will have to sweat before he finds out whether he can ever achieve his dream of again competing at the Olympic Games.
The British 400metre runner’s two-year ban has been lifted under the International Amateur Athletic Federation's 'exceptional circumstance' rule.
But technically he remains guilty of a drugs offence and as such is not allowed to compete in an Olympic Games, under the British Olympic Association's (BOA) hard-line regulations.
"We have already been in contact with the BOA and I'm hoping that they will recognise, like the IAAF has, that Mark's is a special case and deserves special consideration," said Richardson's manager Mike Whittingham.
Richardson has always claimed he never knowingly took the banned steroid nandrolone, blaming contaminated food supplements for the positive result, recorded nearly two years ago.
Now he is warning fellow athletes never to touch controversial supplements.
"My life has not been my own since October 1999. I was not in control and I was lost - it was a horrible feeling," said Richardson.
"My advice to other athletes is simple - never ever take supplements because you are playing Russian roulette with your career.
Richardson is back on the road to recovery after struggling throughout the winter season with an Achilles injury, but he could be back in action in just seven days - as a member of Britain's 4x400metre relay quartet at the European Cup in Bremen. PA