Doping: Kenyan Marathoner Banned!!

Kenyan marathon runner Samuel Kalalei, who won the Athens marathon last November, has been banned for four years after testing positive for blood-booster EPO, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has said.

EPO (Erythroprotein) is a glycoprotein secreted by the kidney which stimulates the production of red blood cells in the bone marrow.

Kalalei’s urine sample, which was collected after the Rotterdam Marathon in April, had returned positive for EPO. The 23-year-old was provisionally suspended by AIU, the independent agency of world athletics ruling body IAAF, on June 4.

The AIU said that all of Kalalei’s results since that event in the Netherlands would now stand disqualified. Kalalei had set a personal best time of two hours 10 minutes and 44 seconds to finish in seventh place.

They include Asbel Kiprop, the former Olympic 1500m gold medalist and Jemima Sumgong, the Rio 2016 Olympic Women’s champion.

Image result for Samuel Kalalei

Other previously banned athletes include long distance runners Eliud Magut and Suleiman Kipses Simotwo who both tested positive for Norandrosterone, a metabolite of the prohibited Nandrolone.

Athletics Kenya is yet to release an official statement on the issue.

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