A Greek court postponed the trial Thursday of sprinters Katerina Thanou and Costas Kenteris, who are charged with making a false statement to authorities over an alleged motorcycle accident just before the 2004 Athens Olympics. The court set a new trial date of Feb. 2, 2009 after the defense teams asked for a postponement because Thanou is traveling to Istanbul, Turkey, to compete in a track meet and because one of the defense lawyers could not appear in court for medical reasons. The sprinters have been accused of staging a motorcycle accident in August 2004 in order to avoid a doping test on the eve of the 2004 Athens Olympics. They subsequently pulled out of the Athens Games, and were suspended for two years. Former Greek athletics coach Christos Tzekos, seven doctors and two witnesses were also charged in connection with the case and are included in the trial. The two sprinters, who were both Olympic medalists at the 2000 Sydney Games, did not appear in court on Thursday.
