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Thomas Kibet taken off Tallinn Marathon podium finish after doping offense and he must return the nearly $18,000US in prize money

Kenya's Thomas Kibet has been stripped off his Tallinn Marathon second-place finish and slapped with a three-year ban after violating an anti-doping rule.

Kenya’s Thomas Kibet Kutere is the latest athlete to be added to the list of shame owing to the presence/use of a prohibited substance (Norandrosterone).

The Athletics Integrity Unit announced that the athlete will be banned for three years and his results from September 10 have since been disqualified.

This means that his second-place finish at the Tallinn Marathon will be disqualified and he would also be forced to return the prize money of Ksh 2,727,663.06 ($17,977US).

The AIU requires that after a doping offense, the national federations should, “Ensure full enforcement of any final decision taken under the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules, including the return of a disqualified athlete’s medals, titles and awards and repayment of prize money.”

Meanwhile, Kibet’s term has also been reduced to three years after he admitted to having committed the offense.

“In the event that the Athlete or other Person either admits the violation and accepts the proposed Consequences or is deemed to have admitted the violation and accepted the Consequences as per Rule 8.5.2(f), the Integrity Unit will promptly.

“issue a decision confirming the commission of the violation(s) and the imposition of the specified Consequences (including, if applicable, a justification for why the maximum potential sanction was not imposed),

“Publicly Report that decision in accordance with Rule 14; and send a copy of the decision to the Athlete or other Person and to any other party that has a right, further to Rule 13, to appeal the decision (and any such party may, within 15 days of receipt, request a copy of the full case file pertaining to the decision),” the AIU said in a statement.

(12/26/2023) Views: 284 ⚡AMP
by Abigael Wuafula

Boston Marathon finisher receives three-year doping suspension

On Thursday, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced the suspension of Kenyan marathoner Maurine Chepkemoi after she tested positive for erythropoietin (EPO) on Nov. 3 during an out-of-competition doping test in Iten, Kenya.

Chepkemoi has a marathon personal best of 2:20:18 from a second-place finish at the 2021 Amsterdam Marathon. Since 2021, she has won the Enschede Marathon in the Netherlands in a course record time of 2:21:10 and finished 16th at the 2022 Berlin Marathon and 31st at the 2023 Boston Marathon in 2:35:25.

The length of her suspension was reduced by one year for admitting to the anti-doping rule violation (ADRV). The automatic period of ineligibility imposed is four years, unless the athlete can demonstrate that the ADRV was not intentional. In Chepkemoi’s case, she accepted her wrongdoing and the charges laid by the AIU, resulting in a three-year ban until Nov. 2026.

In a statement to Canadian Running, Chepkemoi’s agency, Demadonna Athletics, confirmed that their athlete openly admitted to seeking and using EPO.

EPO has been on the World Anti-Doping Prohibited List since the 1990s; it is used to improve endurance performance or to speed up recovery.

Chepkemoi was one of two Kenyan runners suspended for three years by the AIU on Thursday. The other runner was 2:08-marathoner Thomas Kibet. The 27-year-old tested positive for the steroid norandrosterone after a second-place finish at the 2023 Tallinn Marathon in Estonia.

There are currently 73 Kenyan athletes on the AIU’s Global List of Ineligible Persons. The Kenyan government is in the first year of their $25 million dollar five-year campaign to test more athletes and fight against doping in athletics. The AIU is working with the Kenyan Government, Athletics Kenya and the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) to combat the issue and test more Kenyan athletes.

(12/22/2023) Views: 275 ⚡AMP
by Marley Dickinson

2021 Tallinn Marathon will be going ahead in September

This September's Tallinn Marathon is still to go ahead, in-line with current coronavirus public event restrictions. Last year's event was cancelled.

While current restrictions limit outdoor event numbers to 12,000, provided checks are conducted, the full marathon entry list will be capped at 1,500 people, with the respective figures for the half-marathon and 10km race being 2,500 and 5,000.

Organizers of outdoor events with more than 100 participants are currently required to conduct coronavirus vaccination checks, either via proof of vaccination or proof of a recent, negative test result.

The event takes place September 11-12, with the full marathon on the second day.

Chief organizer Mati Lilliallik said that the plan is to hold a safe event for all, including local residents, and that no excessive risks will be taken, while routes will avoid the most densely-populated residential areas.

Registration is still open, Lilliallik said, though there is a clear and present risk that additional restrictions may be imposed by authorities between now and race day, or even that the event would need to be canceled.

Organizers say they are following national government, Tallinn City Government and Health Board (Terviseamet) regulations and recommendations at all times.

The half-marathon starts at 9 a.m. on September 11, the 10km race at 5 p.m., while the full 42.2-kilometer marathon starts at 9 a.m. on Sunday, September 12.

Cancellation or restrictions which cause too many issues for entrants will be followed by full refund or transferal of entry to the 2022 event, BNS reports, or alternatively entry into the virtual marathon – held for the first time last year – which runs throughout the entirety of September, i.e. participants get 30 days to complete the 42.2km on foot, either running or walking.

Last weekend brought around 2,600 triathletes to Tallinn, to take part in the annual Iron Man event.

(08/11/2021) Views: 1,000 ⚡AMP
by

Ethiopia’s Mulu Seboka will take on the in-form Celestine Chepchirchir of Kenya at the Guangzhou Marathon, a World Athletics Gold Label road race, on Sunday

The Prolific Ethiopian racer, who will compete in her fifth marathon of the year, owns the fastest personal best in the field at 2:21:56 set in Dubai four years ago. The 35-year-old competed in the southern Chinese city in 2016 and finished second in 2:32:26.

Seboka, a past Dubai Marathon, has a season’s best of 2:27:19 from her four marathons. She will obviously not be running with fresh legs in Guangzhou as her last race was just one week ago in Kunming, where she scored a 2:32:54 victory.

The rising Chepchirchir, 23, is the second fastest but the highest ranked (43) woman toeing the line. She knocked more than two minutes off her PB to finish third in Seoul in 2:24:48 nine months ago and went on to set a course record of 2:26:44 at the Cape Town Marathon in September.

Guangzhou will be her third race of the year and first time competing on Chinese soil.

Lilia Fisikovici of Moldova also improved lifetime best this April to 2:27:26 and has been pursuing her second international marathon title following her win in Krakow last April.

Other sub-2:30 runners in the field include two-time Daegu Marathon winner Pamela Rotich of Kenya who has a PB of 2:27:48, Ethiopia’s Hiwot Gebrekidan, who set a winning mark of 2:25:45 in See Genezareth two years ago, as well as Chinese duo Ding Changqin and He Yinli.

The men’s field is led by Kenya’s Eliud Kiptanui. The 30-year-old clocked a PB of 2:05:21 to finish second at the Berlin Marathon four years ago and has managed to run inside 2:10 every year since 2014. But the past winner in Ottawa and Prague has yet to break that barrier in 2019 as he only clocked a mediocre 2:14:15 to finish seventh in Xiamen in January and failed to finish in Taiyuan three months ago.

Kiptanui’s countryman Mike Kiptum took more than three minutes off his career best to finish third at Seoul Marathon in 2:06:22 in March, suggesting that the 27-year-old would be another serious candidate not only to win the title but also to rewrite the 2:10:01 course record set by Morocco’s Abdellah Tagharrafet in 2015.

The powerful Kenyan contingent also includes Felix Kirwa, whose PB of 2:06:13 was set in Eindhoven two years ago, and 31-year-old Josphat Letting, winner of the Tallinn Marathon in September.

Ethiopia’s Gebretsadik Abraha could be the biggest threat to the Kenyans. Although the 27-year-old achieved his 2:06:23 PB back in 2012, the consistent Abraha has maintained a high level of competitiveness, earning four podium finishes in his six races since 2017.

(12/06/2019) Views: 1,837 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

Thousands of runners took part in this year's Tallinn Marathon on Sunday, running around the capital city

This year's event was won by Josphat Leting from Kenya, who finished in 2:12.42. Raido Mitt, who finished in seventh place, was the fastest Estonian.

More than 20,000 people signed up to participate in Sunday's marathon and Saturday's half marathon. The marathon course started at Viru Gate in the Old Town.

Today's Tallinn Marathon was the biggest ever long distance running event in Estonia. 

The race record was set in the women's marathon distance as well as the men's and women's half marathon. Never before have the first five marathons of the Tallinn Marathon been finished in less than 2 hours and 16 minutes.

A true world class was shown at the half marathon distance. The winner was Evans Cheruiyot from Kenya with a new Tallinn Half Marathon record in 1 hour and 29 second. 

(09/08/2019) Views: 1,975 ⚡AMP

Estonian Roman Fosti won Sunday's Tallinn Marathon

Estonian Roman Fosti won Sunday's Tallinn Marathon in 2:24:08. Whereas previous marathon victors have generally hailed from abroad, Sunday was local heroes' time to shine. Second-placed man Ülari Kais (2:31.06) and Aleksandr Kuleshov (4th, 2:35.11) are Estonian; Sandwiched between them was Kenyan (and first women's runner) Daisy Langat (3rd, 2:33:50). Started at 09.00 EEST by President Kersti Kaljulaid, the marathon is one of four races over the weekend. The 10km Sügisjooks ('Autumn run') on Saturday followed Friday evening's 5km youth run. The 21 km half-marathon started at 10.45 on Sunday. Estonian Tiidrek Nurme won the half-marathon (1:03:27), a mere two seconds ahead of Kenyan star Peter Kiprotich. With up to 25,000 runners taking part (09/10/2018) Views: 1,711 ⚡AMP