Outrage As Another Kenyan London Marathon Champion Is Suspended

Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) on Tuesday issued a charge against former Champion of both London and Amsterdam marathon Daniel Kinyua Wanjiru.

The AIU has provisionally suspended marathon specialist Daniel Kinyua Wanjiru of Kenya with immediate effect for an Athlete Biological Passport violation under the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules,” AIU posted on Twitter.

The fundamental principle of the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) is to monitor selected biological variables over time that indirectly reveal the effects of doping rather than attempting to detect the doping substance or method itself.

Under anti-doping rules, Wanjiru cannot participate in any competition until a hearing has taken place into the allegation.

Paul Terget the former marathon record holder has called for criminalisation of doping offence to restore discipline in Kenya athletics.

Current Kenyan law stipulates a jail term of up to three years for support staff found guilty in connection with doping, but not for athletes.

From 2004 to August 2018, 138 Kenyan athletes tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs, according to a WADA report published in September 2018.

With their high number of dopers, Kenya was placed under category A on the list of countries being watched together with Nigeria, Ethiopia, Bahrain, Morocco, Ukraine and Belarus.