Image: mekelletimes.com
Genzebe Dibaba, the world record holder and reigning world champion in the Women’s 1,500m is facing doping allegations days after she lost her Olympic crown to Faith Kipyegon of Kenya in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Speaking to journalists after the final, Dibaba reiterated that she is clean after her coach, Jama Aden a Somali national was arrested in June in Spain on allegations of selling banned substances to athletes.
“I am completely and crystal clean from doping,” Dibaba told AP, adding that the allegations psychologically affected her before the final.
Jama was released three days later but has since been unable to leave the European nation and did not accompany the Ethiopian for the Rio Olympics Games that started on August 5, in Brazil.
Since his arrest, doping suspicion has spread to athletes under Jama’s watch.
The middle-distance race has had past incidents of doping by competitors.
During the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Britain, six of the eight top finishers faced allegations of using performance enhancing drugs, ESPN reported.
Four of them were banned including Asli Cakir Alptekin who won the final. She relinquished her gold medal in August 2015 after receiving a career-ending suspension.
The others were Gamze Bulut of Turkey, the silver medallist and Russians Ekatrina Kostetskaya and Natalia Kareiva.
In March, Abeba Argawi Gebretsadik an Ethiopian-born Swedish athlete and former world champion in the same distance voluntarily agreed to a suspension after failing a drug test in Addis Ababa in January.
Speaking through an interpreter, Dibaba said that she has been tested at least four times and has never failed the drug checks.
Dibaba added that she will stand by Jama if he is cleared by investigations.
In a similar move, reigning World and former Olympic champion in the men’s race Asbel Kiprop of Kenya defended his agent, Federico Rosa after he was charged in court for supplying banned substances to athletes under his stable, in July.
The claims against Dibaba and her coach came days after two Team Kenya officials were sent home from the Olympic Village on doping and bribery allegations.
The two, John Anzrah a sprints coach and Michael Rotich, the team manager have already been charged in court as investigations continue.
The three incidents at the Rio Olympics have drawn global attention on two of the dominant middle and long-distance running nations, Kenya and Ethiopia.
However, none of their athletes has failed the random doping tests even as suspicion keeps mounting.Read more here
No comments:
Post a Comment