Olympic and world marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir provisionally suspended over EPO

Provisional suspension

The Athletics Integrity Unit announced on Friday, 23 October, that Peres Jepchirchir has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for EPO, a substance banned in endurance sport. The 33-year-old Kenyan is the reigning world marathon champion and won Olympic gold in the marathon at the Tokyo Games in 2021. The AIU, which investigates doping in track and field on behalf of World Athletics, published its finding on X. Under the AIU's provisional suspension guidelines, she cannot compete until a final hearing and decision have taken place. EPO, or erythropoietin, is a hormone that stimulates red blood cell production and boosts the body's oxygen-carrying capacity and endurance.

an out-of-competition sample, collected in Kenya prior to her recent Sydney Marathon victory, returned an adverse analytical finding for EPO.

The sample and her career

The sample was taken out of competition in Kenya before the Sydney Marathon, which she won on 30 August in 2:18:31. Her other marathon wins came in New York in 2021, Boston in 2022 and London in 2024, which makes Sydney her fourth win in that group of races. She is also a former world record holder in the half marathon. She won the world marathon title at the 2025 championships in Tokyo. A day earlier, the AIU banned former Tokyo Marathon champion Ruti Aga for six years after she tested positive for methylprednisolone and for tampering with the anti-doping process.

Kenya's doping record

The AIU has suspended or banned more than 140 Kenyan athletes since 2017, including women's marathon world record holder Ruth Chepngetich. Kenya placed second in the overall standings at the Tokyo world championships with 11 medals (seven gold, two silver and two bronze), behind the United States. In September, World Athletics awarded Kenya the 2029 world championships, which will be the first held in Africa. On 6 October, WADA president Witold Banka said Kenya must set an example in the fight against doping after receiving the event.

Reaction and next steps

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, a former Olympic champion, said on 14 October that the championships would help in the search for a cleaner Kenyan athletics. Jepchirchir's case is the latest in a long run of doping cases involving Kenyan distance runners. The provisional suspension stands while the investigation continues, and a final hearing and decision are still to come.