You do not have to be fast or Kenyan to dope anymore. A 35:09, 10km runner from Ethiopia, Aberash Mutala Amena, tested positive for the presence of testosterone. The athlete is now provisionally suspended with an appeal to the Court of Arbitration of Sport available. Her half marathon is even slower at 1:18:05.
There are no red flag moments in her career having run 1:18 multiple times over the past decade. Her best 10km in 2024 is 35:27. Well, at least she is consistent.
The AIU has provisionally suspended Aberash Mutala Amena (Ethiopia) for Presence/Use of a Prohibited Substance (Testosterone)
— Athletics Integrity Unit (@aiu_athletics) November 28, 2024
Details here: https://t.co/Y8LF9j2o9f pic.twitter.com/np7NAmK2jT
Her claim to fame may be in finishing in third place during the Thailand Pattaya 10K in July this year (35:27).
Recently, several Ethiopian athletes have been suspended for suspected doping. Meanwhile, neighbours Athletics Kenya must sort out its issues to do with defunding anti-doping or risk being unable to compete internationally. Since the funding has been cut off very few to no Kenyans have been suspended.
Clearly, the Kenyan government discovered the source of the problem and solved the issue. From approximately $5 million per year to $50,000 per year stopped the bleeding, for now.
It has been proven that in-competition testing rarely works, while out-of-competition testing catches the cheaters.
It should be back to the drawing board for the Athletics Integrity Unit to find a way to continue to test the Kenyans.
