Reynolds Is Allowed to Compete

The suspension of quarter-miler Butch Reynolds, who continues to deny that he used steroids, was temporarily lifted by the American Arbitration Assn. Monday so that he can compete in the U.S. Track and Field Championships in New York this week.

The Athletics Congress suspended Reynolds from all international track and field competition for two years, dating from Aug. 12, 1990, after announcing that he tested positive for steroids after a meet in Monte Carlo, Monaco, on that date.

Reynolds and his attorney, Greg Lashutka of Columbus, Ohio, insist that Reynolds did not use steroids and that the charges were the result of a mix-up in testing procedures. Arbitrator Richard E. Gombart found that the suspension was improper because there was evidence that two urine samples allegedly from Reynolds did not come from the same man.

The decision applies only to the games in New York beginning Wednesday and not to later events that Reynolds wants to enter, including the 1992 Olympics at Barcelona, Spain.

Reynolds set the world record of 43.29 seconds for 400 meters in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1988. The same year, he won a gold medal in the 1,600-meter relay and a silver in the 400 in the Olympic Games at Seoul, South Korea.