Athletics unit provisionally suspends another Kenyan athlete

The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) provisionally suspended another Kenyan athlete on Wednesday, just days after top runner Ruth Chepngetich received a suspension on suspicion of doping.

Roncer Kipkorir Konga, 30, is best known for his victory at the Prague half-marathon in 2023 with a time of 59:43.

"The AIU has provisionally suspended Roncer Kipkorir Konga (Kenya) for Presence/Use of a Prohibited Substance (Testosterone)," according to a statement, posted on X.

It did not give any further details.

The provisional ruling comes after Chepngetich, 30, was suspended after testing positive for the banned diuretic hydrochlorothiazide on March 14, according to the AIU.

It threatens to destroy a career that has seen her win the 2019 world marathon title in Doha and set the marathon world record in Chicago last October at 2hr 09min 56sec, making her the first woman to run the distance under 2hr 10min.

Kenya worked to clean up its image after a string of doping scandals around the 2016 Rio Olympics led to it being declared non-compliant by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Nearly 130 Kenyan athletes, mainly long-distance runners, have been sanctioned for drugs offences since 2017, and Kenya has put in place a $25 million, five-year programme to attempt to combat the problem.