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Former world champion Gudaf Tsegay has been handed a four-month suspension after admitting the presence of a prohibited substance in an out-of-competition doping test, the Athletics Integrity Unit has announced.
The 29-year-old Ethiopian, a bronze medallist in the women’s 5,000m at the Tokyo Olympics and a multiple world champion over 5,000m and 10,000m, tested positive in December 2025 for a metabolite of Letrozole.
Letrozole is classified by the World Anti-Doping Agency as a prohibited aromatase inhibitor and is commonly used in medical treatment to reduce estrogen levels, including in certain cancer therapies.
Following notification of the adverse finding in January, Tsegay promptly informed authorities that she had been prescribed the drug for a diagnosed medical condition and provided supporting medical documentation.
She later applied for a Therapeutic Use Exemption in February, and World Athletics initially found that her treatment met international standards. However, the World Anti-Doping Agency rejected a retroactive exemption request, resulting in an anti-doping rule violation.
The Athletics Integrity Unit said the four-month ban reflected no significant fault or negligence, noting her prompt admission, medical justification, and the likelihood that approval would have been granted if the exemption had been sought in advance.
Her suspension has been backdated to 1 June and will run until 30 September, sidelining one of Ethiopia’s leading distance runners during the period.
