ADAK explains strategies of fighting doping menace as Team Kenya eyes Olympic glory

The Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) says it cannot ascertain whether half of the samples taken two weeks ago on Kenyan athletes, prior to their departure to the Paris Olympic Games will turn out clean.

Speaking when she made an appearance on Sporty Monday, Citizen TV’s sports magazine show, ADAK's Standards and Compliance Director Peninah Wahome said they are yet to receive results of half the athletes whose tests were conducted two weeks before their departure to Miramas for training.

Wahome however acknowledged that doping is a reality in Kenya, noting that increased government funding has enabled ADAK to ramp up its testing efforts significantly. From June 2023 to July 2024, over 4, 500 tests were conducted across various sports disciplines, a substantial increase aimed at nailing potential dopers and maintaining the integrity of Kenyan athletics.

Wahome also said the agency has taken up the responsibility of educating athletes on the importance of updating their whereabouts, and not leaving the mandate to athletes or their coaches.

Kenya has been on the crosshairs lately with some of the sanctions coming from Whereabouts Failures.

In order to tame such cases, Wahome says ADAK has taken steps to educate athletes about the importance of this responsibility, meeting them in camps and workshops to emphasize personal accountability.

ADAK has also strengthened its collaboration with international federations and key stakeholders, ensuring a united front against doping. For athletes and rogue medical practitioners engaging in doping, ADAK is actively on their doorstep, conducting thorough intelligence gathering and investigations, she said.

ADAK’s Head of Legal Services Bildad Rogoncho said the agency is working with relevant stakeholders to determine appropriate penalties, noting that efforts to monitor and regulate managers and agents have also been intensified to help weed out the vice.

The anti-doping agency is also collaborating with local and national federations to scrutinize those entering Kenya.

ADAK is also implementing the Enhanced Athletic Anti-Doping Program, aimed at cleaning the sport and addressing doping allegations.

“We are currently implementing a project. The project is referred to as The Enhanced Anti-Doping Program,” he said.  “Basically we want to clean that particular sport. We are very concerned with the numbers that are there as well as the allegations being peddled out there. So we want to demonstrate to the world that we are doing all that we can to ensure we are playing clean as Kenyans.”