NAIROBI, Kenya, April 2, 2025 – Athletics Kenya (AK) have earmarked 444 Kenyan athletes across the world for mandatory testing ahead of the World Championships in Tokyo in September this year.
AK president Lt Gen (Rtd) Jack Tuwei said all athletes will have to undergo three no-notice out-of-competition mandatory anti-doping tests.
“The deadline for the first mandatory test is on the 24th of May this year. All these requirements for mandatory testing have been communicated to all these athletes and are expected to comply with them,” Lt Gen (Rtd) Tuwei said.
The president further warned the federation will be strict in the application of these requirements.
He asked all athletes to read the requirements keenly and follow them to the letter, lest they kiss their Tokyo dreams goodbye.
“We would like to remind all athletes to be very careful and follow all the mandatory requirements. Any athlete who fails to undertake the first test will not be allowed to represent the country in Tokyo regardless of the number of subsequent tests they undertake,” Lt Gen (Rtd) Tuwei said.
Speaking at the same time, Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) education officer Kennedy Mwai said they will reach out to Kenyan athletes outside the country to ensure they are knowledgeable of these requirements as much as possible.
“We will do a mapping of the different athletes across the world and reach out to them to ensure they get the relevant education on these testing requirements. With the advancement in many countries, mapping these athletes shouldn’t be such a difficult task,” Mwai said.
The stringent testing requirements are part of the consequences of Kenya’s classification in Category A of countries that are susceptible and experience rampant doping.
