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Kenyan athletes are in the eye of a storm yet again after the suspension of Ruth Chepng’etich over doping but which other big names have been caught cheating?
The athletics world is still coming to terms with the shocking news of the suspension of world marathon record holder Ruth Chepng’etich for an anti-doping rule violation.
Chepng’etich, who ran an incredible 2:09:56 to break the marathon world record in Chicago last year, was provisionally suspended on Thursday July 17, 2025, increasing the number of Kenyan runners who have found themselves in the doping mess.
Kenya remains in Category A, a list of countries heavily watched by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) due to the high number of doping cases, and incidents like these will further increase the security.
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Hundreds of Kenyan athletes have been caught cheating over the years and among them are high-profile names that sent shockwaves when they were caught.
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13:00 - 18.07.2025
‘Like a Punch in the Gut’ - American Marathoner Takes Swipe at Ruth Chepng’etich After Shocking Doping Suspension
US marathon world record holder Emily Sisson has hit out at Kenya’s Ruth Chepng’etich following her shocking suspension due to an anti-doping rule violation.
List of Shame: 10 Big-Name Kenyan Athletes Caught in Doping Mess
Ruth Chepng’etich
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The latest name to join the long list of shame, world marathon record holder Ruth Chepng’etich was handed a provisional suspension due to the presence of banned substance diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) that was detected in her urine sample collected on March 14, 2025.
HCTZ, commonly used as a masking agent, has a minimum reporting level of 20 nanograms per millilitre (ng/mL) in urine but Chepng’etich's sample showed 3,800 ng/mL, an astonishing 190 times above the normal range, and she is staring at a two-year ban from competition.
It was a shocking revelation given her standing as a three-time Chicago Marathon winner and 2019 world marathon champion.
Asbel Kiprop
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Asbel Kiprop was handed a four-year ban after testing positive for the banned blood booster erythropoietin (EPO) in November 2017.
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10:20 - 18.07.2025
Ruth Chepngetich: What Next for the Marathon World Record Holder After Provisional Doping Suspension?
Marathon world record holder Ruth Chepngetich faces a provisional doping suspension, placing her future in athletics under serious uncertainty.
The three-time world 1,500m champion and 2008 Olympics gold medalist has since seen his ban end but has struggled to return to competition, having gone through an emotional meltdown since his suspension, although he maintained his innocence throughout the ordeal, claiming he was ‘framed.’
Jemima Sumgong
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The other biggest female name to go down due to doping was Jemima Sumgong, who became the first Kenyan woman to win an Olympics marathon gold at the 2016 Rio Games.
Her win would, however, be tainted when she was handed an eight-year ban, starting on April 3, 2017 after testing positive for banned blood booster EPO.
Sumgong was initially given a four-year ban in 2017, which was doubled in 2019, after it emerged that she had lied and fabricated her medical records.
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07:30 - 09.11.2024
Asbel Kiprop: Fame, loss and the redemptive journey of a running legend
After a social media post where Asbel Kiprop blamed a woman for wrecking his family and career, friends and mentors intervened helping him refocus seek support and rebuild his life.
Rita Jeptoo
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One of the biggest names before Ruth Chepng’etich, Rita Jeptoo’s case brought Kenya big shame when she was in 2014 handed a two-year doping ban, which was later increased to four years, after testing positive for EPO in an out-of-competition test on September 25, 2014.
All her results after April 17, 2014 were annulled, including her wins at the 2014 Boston and Chicago marathons, citing "her deceptive and obstructive conduct throughout the proceedings" as aggravating factors justifying the maximum penalty.
Lawrence Cherono
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Former Boston and Chicago marathon winner Lawrence Cherono was handed a seven-year ban in July 2024 after he was found to have violated anti-doping regulations by using banned substance trimetazidine in 2022, leading to a two-year provisional suspension.
The AIU imposed a ban of four years for the violation, together with another four-year ban, for tampering or attempted tampering of the doping control, but reduced the overall ban by one year due to admission and acceptance.
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19:51 - 10.07.2024
Kenyan marathoner Lawrence Cherono joins list of shame after seven-year doping ban
Former Boston and Chicago Marathon champion Lawrence Cherono is the latest high profile athlete to get a doping ban.
Wilson Kipsang
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Former world marathon record holder Wilson Kipsang, who won the London Marathon twice, and also claimed wins in New York, Tokyo and Berlin, makes the list of shame following his surprise suspension in January 2020.
Kipsang was slapped with a four-year ban in June 2020, backdated to January 2020, due to anti-doping rule violations, specifically four "whereabouts failures" between April 2018 and May 2019, and for tampering with the investigation by providing false evidence.
His ban ended in January 2024 but the now 43-year-old is yet to return to competition.
Rhonex Kipruto
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World 10,000m bronze medallist and World 10km recorder holder Rhonex Kipruto was suspended in June 2024 for doping related irregularities in his Athlete Biological Passport (ABP)
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18:04 - 08.06.2024
Rhonex Kipruto reveals next move after six-year ban by Athletics Integrity Unit
Talented road runner Rhonex Kipruto has promised to fight for the truth and noted that he is innocent following his six-year ban by the Athletics Integrity Unit.
The AIU, through the disciplinary tribunal, suspended Kipruto for six years. The tribunal rejected his defence after considering and reviewing expert submission, concluding that "the cause of the abnormalities in the ABP is most likely due to blood manipulation" through the use of recombinant human erythropoietin (EPO) and noting that "there is no other plausible explanation" for the abnormal values found in the 24-year-old ABP.
Elijah Manangoi
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Elijah Manangoi enjoyed a great two-year spell between 2017 and 2018, winning gold in 1,500m at the 2017 World Championships, 2018 Commonwealth Games as well as the African Championships but would soon land in trouble.
In November 2020, Manangoi was handed a two-year suspension for failing to make himself available for three drugs tests, the Athletics Integrity Unit backdating his ban to December 22, 2019. Since the end of his ban nearly four years ago, Manangoi has struggled to return to competition.
Sarah Chepchirchir
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Former Tokyo Marathon champion Sarah Chepchirchir was slapped with a career-ending eight-year ban in February 2024 for a second anti-doping rule violation.
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19:26 - 13.02.2024
ATHLETICS Serial doper Sarah Chepchirchir slapped with an eight-year ban by AIU
39-year-old runner Sarah Chepchirchir has been slapped with an eight-year ban for violating the anti-doping rules for the second time following her first ban which happened from 2019 to 2023.
As per the BBC, the long-distance runner had returned an adverse analytical finding for testosterone in a sample collected at a marathon in Thailand in November 2023.
Chepchirchir's results from November 5, 2023 were annulled with her ban backdated to December 22, 2023 and her punishment doubled as she had also been banned in 2019 because of abnormalities in her athlete blood passport.
Ferdinand Omanyala
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A rare case of triumph over adversity, Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala bounced back from a major setback to become a global superstar.
In 2017, Omanyala received a 14-month suspension, having tested positive for the prohibited substance betamethasone, which he had mistakenly used during treatment for his back injury, which he sustained during training.
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10:52 - 26.09.2024
5 top Kenyan athletes handed doping bans in 2024
Faith Chepkoech became the latest Kenyan athlete to be suspended for a doping violation but who are the big names caught in the act this year?
He successfully returned to competition and has since won two African titles, broken the African record and also claimed the Commonwealth title over the 100m and is currently among the world’s leading sprinters.
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