Kenyan athlete Daniel Kinyanjui among trio banned by AIU for doping
Kenyan distance runner Daniel Kinyanjui has received a five-year doping ban after testing positive for a banned blood-boosting agent, while fellow countryman Benard Koech faces provisional suspension over suspicious biological passport data. The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) also confirmed sanctions against athletes from Mexico and Croatia in its latest crackdown on anti-doping violations.
Kenyan long-distance runner Daniel Kinyanjui has been slapped with a five-year ban by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) for doping violations, further casting a shadow over the country's athletics reputation.
Kinyanjui, 20, tested positive for methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta (CERA)—a banned blood-boosting agent—during an out-of-competition test conducted on 27 December 2024 in Keringet, Kenya. The AIU also reported abnormalities in his Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) consistent with blood manipulation on multiple occasions.
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Although the AIU considered imposing a six-year sanction due to the repeated nature of the violations, the ban was reduced by one year after Kinyanjui admitted guilt and accepted the charges. His disqualification also extends to all results from 21 September 2024.
In a related development, fellow Kenyan athlete Benard Kibet Koech, 27, has been provisionally suspended after his ABP showed irregularities suggesting possible use of a banned substance or method. Koech had a strong 2024 season, finishing fifth in the men’s 10,000m final at the Paris Olympics with a time of 26:43.98, placing him 23rd on the all-time list. His case remains under investigation.
Elsewhere, the AIU has also issued sanctions against athletes from Mexico and Croatia.
Mexico’s Citlali Cristian Moscote has been banned for three years after testing positive for Octodrine, a prohibited stimulant, during the 10K Valencia Ibercaja race in Spain on 12 January 2025. Moscote, 30, argued her positive result may have been caused by contaminated supplements, but was only able to test one product and could not provide conclusive proof. This is her second doping offence, having served a previous two-year ban in 2019.
In Croatia, long-distance runner Andrej Hladnik has received a three-year suspension effective 6 June 2025. He tested positive for Ostarine—an anabolic agent—after competing in the Zagreb Marathon on 13 October 2024. While Hladnik claimed unintentional ingestion through supplements, the AIU found no trace of the banned substance in any of the products he submitted for testing. His early admission of guilt, however, led to a one-year reduction from the standard four-year penalty.
The AIU continues to intensify its global anti-doping efforts, with biological passports and intelligence-based testing forming key tools in its crackdown on cheating in athletics.
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