No dope conspiracy against Kenya, AK boss Tuwei says

Athletics Kenya (AK) president Jackson Tuwei has rebutted suggestions that there is an organised conspiracy to fix the country’s sportsmen in doping cases as sanctions involving Kenyan athletes soar.

The former 1500m world champion Elijah Manangoi became the latest in a string of Kenyans to face doping sanctions after authorities revealed on Thursday he has missed a series of tests.

The Commonwealth gold medalist was one of four Kenyan athletes sanctioned, along with long-distance runner Patrick Siele who was alleged to have evaded, refused or failed to submit for a sample collection.

Mercy Kibarus was banned for eight years after testing positive for an anabolic steroid, a second doping offence within a 10-year time frame while Kenneth Kipkemoi was handed a two-year suspension.

But Tuwei maintained the sanctions were just, adding the federation and the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) had played its part in disseminating doping awareness lessons to its athletes.

“We even have online meetings for athletes where educate them on the need to honour testing dates. Claims that Kenyan athletes are being fixed cannot hold as these issues have been made very clear to them.

“We have give serious focus to elite athletes in a bid to ensure they are engaging in clean competition,” he said.

Early this month, Wilson Kipsang – the former marathon world-record holder, was banned four years for whereabouts failures.