LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- USA Track & Field officials could be barred from next summer's Athens Olympics if they continue to refuse to cooperate in the investigation into Jerome Young's doping case.

The IOC executive board decided Friday to consider denying accreditation to USATF administrators if they fail to explain why Young was exonerated after testing positive for steroids in 1999.

Young won a gold medal in the 1,600-meter relay at the 2000 Sydney Games. If the International Olympic Committee finds he was improperly cleared, Young and the rest of the team, including Michael Johnson, could be stripped of medals.

The IOC sent another letter Friday to U.S. Olympic Committee officials asking their help. IOC president Jacques Rogge also requested more information on six of 27 doping cases from the 1980s and 1990s that were reported to the IOC by the USOC in September.

Rogge said his organization does not want to issue threats, preferring to let the USOC pressure USATF.

USATF repeatedly has refused to supply information on the Young case, citing confidentiality rules. It also says it is bound by an international arbitration court ruling upholding its right to maintain secrecy in previous doping acquittals.

"We have done everything we can do legally and otherwise," USATF spokeswoman Jill Geer said from the group's meeting in Greensboro, N.C.

A confirmed steroid offense is punishable by a minimum ban of two years, a penalty that would have ruled Young out of the Sydney Olympics. Young, the world 400-meter champion, has said he never committed a doping offense.

In other matters at the end of the two-day executive board meeting, Rogge said the IOC was expanding its out-of-competition testing to include foreign players in the NBA. Until now, only American players were subject to the unannounced checks. Players who refuse to cooperate will be barred from competing in the Athens Olympics.

Rogge said anti-doping officials should use undercover informers in the battle against steroids such as THG that are aimed at avoiding detection.

"We need people there in the field who know what is happening and are able to inform us," he said.