Olympics-French shuttler duo Corvee and Labar qualify after CAS intervention

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(Reuters) – French shuttlers Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar qualified for the doubles tournament at the Paris Olympics after a successful intervention from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the French Badminton Federation (FFBAD) said on Friday.

The pair had fallen short of qualifying after the Badminton World Federation (BWF) corrected its rankings in April to fix an error in points calculation made in 2023, prompting the duo to move to the CAS.

But with the IOC accepting the BWF’s request to make an exception for them, Corvee and Labar will compete in the men’s doubles tournament, which usually features 16 pairs.

The tournament will now have three pools of four pairs and one pool of five pairs.

“It’s both a relief and a source of anger. We’re obviously very happy with the outcome,” FFBAD president Yohan Penel said in a statement.

“Lucas and Ronan, who have been through an emotional rollercoaster, will be able to live out their Olympic dream, but the conditions under which they have been preparing have been severely affected.”

The BWF on Friday postponed the Olympics men’s doubles draw after the CAS hearing.

Corvee and Labar will join other athletes at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP) to train for the Olympics, FFBAD said.

The Paris Games begin on July 26.

(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Radnedge)