DOPING Jacobs' suit dismissed by judge

KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- A federal judge has dismissed Regina Jacobs' lawsuit against the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency and USA Track & amp; Field that challenged the appeals process for athletes accused of doping violations.
Jacobs, a native of Oakland who is America's best female middle-distance runner, tested positive for the steroid THG at the 2003 USA Track and Field Championships at Stanford.
THG, a previously undetectable steroid, is the drug at the heart of the Balco scandal.
Jacobs has denied knowingly taking an illegal substance but still faces a two-year ban that would cost her a chance to compete at this summer's Athens Olympics.
Jacobs' contention was that the pool of arbiters in the hearing process, which follows a positive drug test, is too small and too biased toward USADA.
But the ruling of New York Judge Barbara S. Jones means Jacobs' hearing will be heard under USADA's arbitration rules. Jacobs will get to pick one arbiter, USADA will choose the second, and the third will be designated by the American Arbitration Association.
"USADA knew this lawsuit had no merit when it was filed, and the court's ruling is the confirmation that we expected," USADA lawyer Travis Tygart said in a prepared statement.
Jacobs' lawyer, Ed Williams, said in an e-mail Monday that he had not yet talked with his client and couldn't comment.
If the arbitration panel rules against Jacobs, she can appeal her case to the Court for Arbitration of Sport.