Marathon runner Titus Ekiru is facing a potential 10-year ban following a doping investigation related to the race that currently places him as the sixth-fastest man in the event’s history.
The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has announced that the 31-year-old Kenyan athlete is confronted with two charges for positive doping tests and two additional charges of tampering.
In May 2021, Ekiru achieved a remarkable time of 2 hours, 2 minutes, and 57 seconds to secure victory at the Milan Marathon.
This performance currently ranks him as the sixth-fastest marathon runner of all time, just behind the world record of 2:01.09 set by Eliud Kipchoge in Berlin the previous year.
During the Italian race, Ekiru tested positive for the corticosteroid triamcinolone acetonide, a substance prohibited for use during competition unless an athlete obtains a medical exemption.
The AIU initially closed the investigation into the positive test in Milan but reopened it after Ekiru subsequently tested positive for a synthetic opioid while winning in Abu Dhabi in November 2021.
“The athlete tested positive for pethidine after winning in Abu Dhabi, and again claimed the outcome resulted from legitimate medical treatment,” the AIU said.
The track and field investigation body said it noticed the “emergence of a pattern of triamcinolone acetonide use among Kenyan athletes.”
The substance is perhaps best known for being used with a medical exemption by British cyclist Bradley Wiggins before competing in the 2012 Tour de France, a race which he won.
Ekiru was provisionally suspended one year ago and was later charged with suspected doping violations in March and April, the AIU said.
Two more charges of tampering have now been added for the runner “submitting falsified medical explanations and documentation to the AIU for both positive tests,” the AIU said.
“This means the elite marathoner — who has the right to defend himself before the Disciplinary Tribunal — is facing a potential 10-year ban,” said the Monaco-based investigation unit, which praised the cooperation it got from Kenyan authorities.
Ekiru also won the half marathon title at the 2019 African Games.