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Kenyan athletes aiming to compete in the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo must undergo three drug tests before being considered for selection, authorities announced on Wednesday.
The move is part of the country’s ongoing efforts to combat doping scandals that have tarnished its athletics reputation.
Athletics Kenya (AK) President Jackson Tuwei revealed that a pool of 444 athletes has been identified for the mandatory drug-testing programme, which will be conducted in collaboration with Kenya’s anti-doping agency and World Athletics’ integrity unit.
Tuwei emphasised that the stringent measures, which were first introduced before the Paris Olympics, would continue to ensure that Kenya presents a clean team for the Tokyo championships, scheduled for September 13-21.
“Athletes may be subject to both in-competition and out-of-competition testing,” Tuwei told reporters.
“Missing a test or failing to comply with testing authorities and sample collection procedures will affect their eligibility,” he warned.
Kenya has intensified its anti-doping efforts after a series of scandals surrounding the 2016 Rio Olympics, which led to the country being declared non-compliant by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Since 2017, nearly 130 Kenyan athletes, predominantly long-distance runners, have been sanctioned for drug offences.
In March, former half-marathon world record holder Kibiwott Kandie was suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) while being investigated for evading or refusing to submit to sample collection.
Despite the Kenyan government committing $25 million over five years to tackle the problem, the country remains in WADA’s highest-risk category for doping violations.
WADA Director General Olivier Niggli recently expressed concerns over the ongoing doping scandals in Kenya, calling the situation “worrying” after an executive committee meeting on March 27.
“Kenya has been a concern for several years,” Niggli said.
However, World Athletics President Sebastian Coe, during a recent visit to Kenya, praised the country’s progress, expressing confidence in its efforts to clean up the sport.
As Kenya looks to redeem its image on the global athletics stage, the new testing requirements could play a crucial role in ensuring a drug-free team competes in Tokyo 2025.
