Ten-Year Ban for Kenyan Athlete Titus Ekiru Over Doping

By Samuel Ouma

The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has banned Kenyan marathoner Titus Ekiru for ten years for violating anti-doping rules.

Ekiru tested positive twice for the Presence of Prohibited Substances in his in-competition urine samples at marathons, which he won in 2021.

The events included the Generali Milano Marathon on May 16, 2021, and the Abu Dhabi Marathon on November 26, 2021.

He tested positive for triamcinolone acetonide and pethidine and its marker norpethidine substances.

AIU said that Ekiru was also charged with two counts of Tampering or attempted Tampering with doping control.

He was accused of colluding with a senior doctor from Nandi County, Kenya's Rift Valley hospital, to forge medical documents.

AIU chair David Howman said that with the assistance of the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK), the body acquired hospital information which showed discrepancies in Ekiru’s explanations and supporting documentation, which he contended stemmed from prescribed medications for injury treatments.

AIU conducted more investigations and discovered a conspiracy with a senior doctor who confirmed injecting the athlete with triamcinolone acetonide during unauthorized hospital visits.

“The outcome in this case is testimony to the collaboration between the AIU and ADAK, but even more so to the important co-operation from the most senior medical official of the Nandi County Government who provided significant evidence needed to ascertain the truth in this case and uncover the complicity of a senior doctor working in one of the County hospitals,” noted Howman.

“Government officials are now working alongside ADAK and the AIU to uncover doping in Kenyan athletics and expose the networks that may be involved. For athletes involved in doping and the entourage who assist them, there is one strong message from this case –there is nowhere to hide.”

In addition to the suspension, which will last from June 28, 2022, to June 27, 2032, Ekiru's results on and since May 16, 2021, have been nullified, resulting in the loss of all awards and money.