The Badminton World Federation (BWF) said Tuesday it had lifted a one-year ban imposed on South Korean star Lee Yong-dae for missing doping tests.

The federation said the ban on the 2008 Olympic gold medalist and ­another Korean player, Kim Ki-jung, "has been reversed and they are eligible to resume playing immediately."

Imposed in January after the players were absent during visits by anti-doping inspectors, the one-year ban had ruled both out of the Asian Games which begin in Incheon in September.

The BWF said evidence presented on the players' behalf at an initial hearing in January was "insufficient and ambiguous," but the new information changed the picture.