Top British showjumper Robert Smith will be free to battle for his place in the Sydney Olympics after all, after winning his appeal against a doping offence.

The British Olympic Association ruled that the positive sample for prohibited substance Procaine provided by one of Smith's horses Senator Mighty Blue amounted to only a minor offence that should not preclude the Yorkshireman from representing his country Down Under.

He is no longer subject to a lifetime Olympic ban and will therefore be able to compete for a place in the Great Britain team.