Olympic champion Kostas Kederis today left hospital ahead of his date with IOC inquisitors claiming his innocence and vowing: "After the crucifixion comes the resurrection."
The Greek 200m gold medal hope, who was admitted to hospital after a motorcycle crash, should learn late tomorrow evening whether he is to be allowed to compete in his home Games or banished for missing a drugs test.
Clearly he intends to run on, if not at this Olympics then in the future, and may even exercise his right to appeal if found guilty tomorrow.
At 9:30am tomorrow morning, the International Olympic Committee's disciplinary committee will quiz both Kederis and his co-accused Katerina Thanou. The sprinters will give their side of the story which has engulfed the Games, overshadowing the first four days of action.
Kederis 31, and Thanou, 29, will be invited to explain the circumstances behind why they missed drugs tests last Thursday, before the disciplinary commission make recommendations to the IOC executive committee.
Unless there are exceptional circumstances, the pair seem certain to be banished from the Games by the IOC executive, heaping embarrassment on the host nation.
Already the Olympics have been difficult to sell to Athenians, and with the two biggest track stars axed from the squad, organisers may find themselves fighting a losing battle as they attempt to fill stadia.
Kederis came out fighting against accusations that he has committed a doping offence by not presenting himself for Thursday's test.
"I suffer great injustice," he said. "Those who are against me now were the first to congratulate me when I won my medals. I know, however, that after the crucifixion comes the resurrection.
"I declare therefore that I have not used banned substances and that this will be proven. I apologise to nobody. I thank those who have sent hundreds of letters, message and emails from the depths of my heart."
Meanwhile, Thanou, who emerged approximately half an hour after Kederis, said: "The love of the world gives me strength. Thank you for the love and the care of the KAT hospital and the governor (of the hospital). I will wait for the decision and I will continue fighting for those who love me and are near me."
