The women’s marathon world record-holder, Ruth Chepngetich, is facing a two-year ban after testing positive for a banned diuretic and masking agent, the Athletics Integrity Unit has announced.
The Kenyan stunned the world when she ran 2hr 9min 56sec at the Chicago marathon last October, a time that shattered the previous record by almost two minutes.
The 30-year-old, however, withdrew from the London Marathon in April where she was due to be the star attraction, saying at the time she was “not in the right place mentally or physically” to race her best.
It has emerged that Chepngetich tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), a banned diuretic and masking agent, on 14 March and, according to the AIU, “opted for a voluntary provisional suspension while the AIU’s investigation was ongoing”.
“A notice of charge has been issued against Chepngetich regarding the detection of the prohibited substance – a diuretic – after an investigation into the Kenyan athlete’s positive test which was reported to the AIU on 3 April this year, at an estimated concentration of 3800 ng/mL in urine,” it said.
Chepngetich rose to prominence in 2018, when she ran 2:18.35 – then the 10th fastest marathon time in history – and followed it up a year later by winning the silver medal at the 2019 world championships. In 2021 she then won her first Chicago marathon before following it up a year later in 2022, when she ran 2:14.18. That time broke her personal best by three minutes, but two years later there was an even bigger jump when she ran 2:09.56 to shatter Tigst Assefa’s previous world record of 2:11.53.
After the race she was asked by a journalist from the website Let’s Run whether her run “was too good to be true”, and asked what her response would be to people who doubted her. “I don’t have any idea,” Chepngetich said.
A day later several members of the Kenyan parliament criticised the journalist for questioning their national hero. Gladys Boss Shollei, deputy speaker of the Kenyan National Assembly, called the allegations against Chepngetich “baseless, unprofessional and disrespectful”.
Athletics Kenya also said it was “preposterous to cast aspersions on a seasoned winner like Chepngetich who has upheld integrity and hard work throughout her career”.
“In any case, many world records were broken this year and to single her out is utterly unfair,” it added. “It is therefore disheartening to hear some sections of the media casting unwarranted doubts on her achievements.”
The head of the AIU, Brett Clothier, said that Chepngetich was “notified and interviewed in person by the AIU in Kenya on 16 April and complied with requests regarding our investigation”.
“When there is a positive test for diuretics and masking agents, a provisional suspension is not mandatory under the World Anti-Doping Code,” he said. “Chepngetich was not provisionally suspended by the AIU at the time of notification. However, on 19 April, she opted for a voluntary provisional suspension while the AIU’s investigation was ongoing.
“In the intervening months, the AIU continued its investigation and today issued a notice of charge and imposed its own provisional suspension.”
Chepngetich, who has the right for her case to be heard before a disciplinary tribunal, has been approached for comment via her agent, Frederico Rosa.
HCTZ is a diuretic, used clinically to treat fluid retention and hypertension. Under the World Anti-Doping Code it is regarded as a class S5 prohibited substance (diuretics and masking agents), prohibited at all times and a specified substance. Diuretics may be abused to mask the presence in urine of other prohibited substances.
“A specified substance has a standard sanction of two years’ ineligibility, subject to possible reduction or increase in accordance with Wada code provisions,” the AIU said.
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