Biathlon

LAUSANNE, Switzerland - Russian biathletes Albina Akhatova and Yekaterina Iourieva have appealed their two-year doping bans to world sport's highest court.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport said Monday that the women have asked to be cleared of all charges filed by the International Biathlon Union.

Five-time Olympic medallist Akhatova and former world champion Iourieva tested positive for the banned endurance-boosting hormone EPO last December at a World Cup event in Ostersund, Sweden.

The IBU suspended them from the world championships in Pyeongchang, South Korea, last February, and imposed two-year bans earlier this month.

The sanctions run through December 2010, excluding Akhatova and Iourieva from the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Under IOC rules, they are also banned from the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

CAS said it hoped to rule on the appeals before the biathlon season begins in November.