Hearings into the use of drugs in...

Hearings into the use of drugs in amateur athletics prompted by the Olympic scandal involving Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson begin today at Toronto.

The Canadian government appointed a commission with sweeping powers to investigate Canadian athletics after Johnson was stripped of his gold medal for testing positive for anabolic steroids at the Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.

Charles Dubin, Ontario associate chief justice, said the hearings would investigate all levels of sports in Canada except professional, although he said nothing was ruled out for inclusion later.