NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 29 – Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba insists Kenya will not be banned by World Athletics due to the recent sporadic cases of doping offences affecting the country’s athletes.
The sport’s top governing body will from today (Tuesday) convene in Rome, Italy for their council meeting with Kenya as one of its agenda, which has fanned speculation that the country will be banished to the wilderness.
“I have been in communication with Lord Seb Coe (World Athletics president). I have sent a very clear message to WA that doping in Kenya, even with the numerous cases, is not state sponsored. You cannot compare us to other countries where it has been proven beyond doubt that doping is state sponsored,” Namwamba said.
The CS said the government – in conjuction with other stakeholders – has worked hard to clamp down on the vice, noting that it would be unfair to punish the entire country due to the actions of a few miscreants.
“It is unfortunate that we are now ranked in category A; being in the top band of the worst offenders of doping. Any action against Kenya would be drastic, devastating and also unwarranted. What we need is not action against the Kenyan flag but action against criminal elements engaged in doping. That is why the government is offering a 100 per cent support to Athletics Kenya to fight the vice,” he said.
Namwamba further revealed that they have adopted a multi-agency approach to the war against doping, including increased funding to the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) to enhance their testing of Kenyan athletes.
“We have committed an additional Ksh 600 million a year, for the next five years, to ADAK to enhance the war against doping. We expect those resources to deployed by AK and ADAK in testing, investigations and enforcement across that whole spectrum of fighting doping,” he said.
Curse of Covid
Speaking at the same time, AK president Jack Tuwei admitted that ADAK has been facing challenges in testing as many athletes as possible.
“AIU (Athletics Integrity Unit) have their own registered testing pool of elite athletes that they focus on. We have the second tier of athletes and the responsibility of testing them belongs to ADAK. Considering the number of athletes in the country, you can imagine the amount of testing they have to do and the expenses they incur. The number of events both locally and internationally are so many that if they have to test everybody, the budget and funding they have will not be enough,” Tuwei said.
He further revealed that the post-Covid-19 period has pressurized many athletes into shortcut routes to success, usually at the behest of unscrupulous middlemen.
“They started talking to the athletes and convincing them they can win without proper training and preparations. They are now dealing with the athletes directly and misleading them into taking prohibited drugs or substances,” he said.
Speaking separately, Nandi senator Samson Cherargei bemoaned WA’s impending axe on Kenya, pointing out that the ramifications would be hard-felt at the grassroots.
“In the Rift Valley region, most of the youth are into sports, especially athletics. A ban or sanction on Kenya will gravely affect the region and cause many job losses for many who depend on athletics for survival,” Cherargei said.
He further called for stiffer penalties against not only athletes but also their managers and coaches who perpetrate the vice.
Some of the elite athletes who have thus far fallen afoul of doping offences this year include 2019 Chicago Marathon champion Lawrence Cherono, 2019 Africa 5000m bronze medalist Lilian Kasait, two-time Rotterdam Marathon champion Marius Kipserem and 2021 Boston Marathon champion Diana Kipyokei, among others.
