We use QCD sum rules with non-local condensates to recalculate more accurat
ely the moments and their confidence intervals of the twist-2 pion distribu
tion amplitude including radiative corrections. We are thus able to constru
ct an admissible set of pion distribution amplitudes which define a reliabi
lity region in the a(2), a(4) plane of the Gegenbauer polynomial expansion
coefficients. We emphasize that models like that of Chernyak and Zhitnitsky
, as well as the asymptotic solution, are excluded from this set. We show t
hat the determined a(2), a(4) region strongly overlaps with that extracted
from the CLEO data by Schmedding and Yakovlev and that this region is also
not far from the results of the first direct measurement of the pion valenc
e quark momentum distribution by the Fermilab E791 Collaboration. Compariso
ns with recent lattice calculations and instanton-based models are briefly
discussed. (C) 2001 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.