Over 50 athletes will be put on a list of shame at the end of this month for violating anti-doping rules, Anti Doping Agency of Kenya CEO Sarah Shibutse has said.
Speaking in Kapsabet, Nandi county, over the weekend Shibutse said improved testing and involving a multi-agency approach in their fight against doping has yielded results but more still needs to be done.
She observed that some athletes have become wary of the heightened fight and have decided to lie low.
“At the end of this month, we will sanction numerous athletes across —part of our strategy in fighting the vice as we prepare for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France. We want to send clean athletes to the Olympics to avoid the shame the nation has received in recent major championships,” said Shibutse as she urged community elders in the county to help spread the message due to the respect they command.
Shibutse also warned athletes against running away from doping control officers terming it an exercise in futility since they will still get sanctioned for failure to provide samples.
"We are now getting to know their ( athletes in hiding) information. We are gathering information about their training camps, their coaches and their managers," she said.
"The crackdown is aimed at nabbing athletes dodging anti-doping personnel in an ongoing massive testing. We will recommend the closure and sanctioning of some training camps after the conclusion of an ongoing investigation."
"For us to ensure success in this journey, we are collaborating with community elders and national government administration,” she said.
ADAK chairman Daniel Makdwallo described dodging DCO as another worrying menace but insisted they will soldier on.
Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba said his ministry has declared zero-tolerance to doping where a Sh3.7 billion has been set aside for the fight as they seek to keep Kenya safe from international regulatory bodies.
"We want these resources put to good use. We already have a multi-agency team comprising the National Intelligence Service (NIS), Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Ministry of Health, and the judiciary among other agencies, in place," Namwamba said.
The CS said the ongoing grassroots engagements were critical in the anti-doping programmes.
"We are going to disrupt the doping network. We are in extraordinary circumstances. Today a record broken by a Kenyan would take months to be verified due to doping suspicions. We are now running under suspicion. We are under the microscope,” said the CS.
