Ireland are in danger of being ejected from the women's bobsleigh

Ireland's women's bobsleigh team will compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics, the International Olympics Committee has ruled.

They lost their automatic spot after the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld an appeal by Australia.

But the IOC has agreed to expand the competition to 21 teams which means Aoife Hoey and Claire Bergin will race.

The IOC said the increase was "an exceptional measure and shall not be taken as a precedent for future Games."

Ireland were ranked as the 20th best team in the world but Australians Astrid Loch-Wilkinson and Cecilia McIntosh contended they deserved an Olympic berth as the best team in Oceania.

Cas agreed the International Bobsleigh & Tobogganing Federation had wrongly applied the criteria - which let Ireland in instead of Australia.

A statement said: "The Cas panel found the clear wording of the qualification system implemented by the FIBT reflected the intention of representation by one men's bob team and one women's bob team from non-represented continents and could not be interpreted otherwise than as formulated.

"Accordingly, the application of the AOC was granted and the FIBT was ordered to allocate a continental representation quota place to the AOC for participation of the pilot Astrid Loch-Wilkinson in the two-man women's bob event in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

"Nevertheless, considering the situation of the Irish athletes, who expected legitimately to be entitled to participate in the Olympic Winter Games 2010 after their entry had been validated by the FIBT and the IOC, the Cas Panel has recommended to the IOC and Vanoc the inclusion of a 21st team in the women's bobsleigh event which is scheduled for 23 February 2010."

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