Park Tae-hwan given Olympic hope by KOC chief

Korean Olympic Committee (KOC) president Kim Jung-haeng has offered a glimmer of hope to banned swimmer Park Tae-hwan, who wants to feature at Rio 2016.

Park was given an 18-month suspension in 2014 by swimming's governing body FINA after testing positive for testosterone.

That ban expired in March, but under KOC rules Park must wait three years before he can be considered for selection again.

Park, a 400-metre freestyle gold medallist at the 2008 Games in Beijing , won the 100m, 200m, 400m and 1,500m events at national trials at the end of last month.

And Kim, a former judoka, expressed the view that he would like to see Park compete at the Rio Games, which begin August.

"Speaking on a personal basis as a former athlete, I think it would be good if Park went to the Olympics," said the KOC president in quotes reported by Yonhap News.

"My response is based on a question that asked for my personal opinion."

Park said: "I believe things will work out fine, and I am trying to concentrate only on training.

"I hope something good will happen so that I can compete at the Olympics."