An 11th-hour decision by a state appeals court Friday will give professional football players Willie Gault and Greg Harrell a second chance to make the U.S. Olympic bobsled team.
The Appellate Division of state Supreme Court overturned a lower court ruling that ordered a halt to new push trials for the team this weekend.The unanimous ruling by the four-member, mid-level appeals court will allow the pair to participate in another round of 1992 Olympic trials today and Sunday at Altenberg, Germany.
The U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Federation must submit the names of the team members to the U.S. Olympic Committee by Monday.
"I'm gratified that my clients will have an opportunity to compete in the push-offs," John Lawrence, a lawyer for Gault and Harrell, said.
The lawyer who had successfully argued in a lower state court to block the new push-offs, said he wouldn't appeal Friday's ruling.
"By the time we would get (an appeal), the push-off trials will already have been done," Michael Friedman said.
Gault, Harrell and track star Edwin Moses claimed they weren't properly informed of the schedule and regulations for the original Olympic bobsled trials at Lake Placid last July.
Lawyers said Gault, Harrell and Moses weren't told of changes in the trial rules, such as placement of a mark for where they had to stop pushing the sled.
The three finished second at the earlier push trials - .01 hundredth of a second behind the team of Todd Snavely, Jeff Woodard and Bryan Leturgez.
Moses hasn't challenged the trial results, saying he needed time to prepare for the Summer Olympics.