Lausanne, Switzerland - Five-time Olympic speed skating champion Claudia Pechstein will hear the outcome of an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against a ban imposed for blood doping on November 25, sport's highest tribunal announced Thursday.

A decision was originally expected this week and the deferral means Pechstein can not compete in this weekend's World Cup event in Hamar, Norway.

Pechstein and the German speed skating association DESG are appealing against a decision by the International Skating Union (ISU) disciplinary commission to suspend her for two years.

Pechstein, who was banned on July 1 after being found guilty of an anti-doping rule violation, was told by CAS in September she could train fully but not take part in competition pending her appeal.

The 37-year-old skier was banned for abnormally high levels of reticulocytes (immature red blood cells) on several occasions, including the all-round world championships in February in Norway.

She has protested her innocence and argued before the court that the high levels of red blood cells could be produced naturally. (dpa)