Kenyan marathoner Kemei Kiprono provisionally suspended by AIU

Kenyan marathoner Kemei Elias Kiprono has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit, after he was found guilty of using banned substance, Trimetazidine.

In a statement, the AIU said Kiprono had been served with a Notice of Charge for violating Article 2.1 and Article 2.2 of its anti-doping regulations. 

“The AIU has provisionally suspended Kemei Elias Kiprono (Kenya) for the Presence/Use of a Prohibited Substance (Trimetazidine),” the AIU stated.

Kiprono’s provisional suspension means he cannot participate in any competition in athletics, until a final decision is reached at a hearing conducted under the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules or the Integrity Code of Conduct.

The 26-year-old, whose last race was the Lagos Marathon in February this year, had won the Pune Marathon in India in December last year, after clocking 2 hours 16 minutes and 5 seconds.

The crackdown on prohibited substances by AIU has also affected two other Kenyan athletes this year, with former world youth champion Jackline Wambui and Josephine Chepkoech handed lengthy suspensions.