A disciplinary tribunal has alleged that there is a Kenyan operation helping athletes cover up doping offences ©Getty Images

An anti-doping disciplinary tribunal convened by Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has concluded that there is a "medically-savvy operation helping athletes to try and cover up doping offences" after similarities were found in at least two recent tampering cases involving Kenyan athletes.

The behaviour amounts to "criminal conduct involving frauds", the AIU discovered.

The suspicion arose in the wake of the latest sanction on a Kenyan athlete, the 26-year-old Eglay Nafuna Nalyanya, banned by the AIU for eight years for three breaches of the World Athletics anti-doping rules.

The middle-distance runner, eighth in the 800 metres at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast, was found guilty of presence of a prohibited substance, use of a prohibited substance, and tampering or attempted tampering with any part of doping control.

While assessing the facts of Nalyanya's case, the three-member panel noticed a similar pattern of explanation and evidence by the athlete to her compatriot Betty Lempus.

The 31-year-old Lempus, who had a personal best for the marathon of 2 hours 23min 40sec, was banned for five years in January for two anti-doping rule violations.

Both Nalyanya and Lempus told the AIU that they had received intramuscular injections while being treated at the same Kenyan hospital and produced medical documents to support their claims.

In both instances, the AIU discovered that the documents were false, the doctors were invented, and that neither athlete had received the injection.

Suspicions arose after Eglay Nafuna Nalyanya used a similar pattern of explanation and evidence to Betty Lempus ©Getty Images
Suspicions arose after Eglay Nafuna Nalyanya used a similar pattern of explanation and evidence to Betty Lempus ©Getty Images

"It is obvious from the almost identical wording of parts of the letter from the supposed doctor [Dr Philip Murey] in the Lempus case that it was written by the same individual as the equivalent letter in the present case," read a statement from the panel.

"The Lempus letter was written a month before the letter from Dr Davis Lukorito Wanambisi in the present case.

"The pattern of behaviour is remarkably similar in both cases.

"There is no possibility in our view that the athlete in the present case had the sophistication or medical knowledge either to draft the letter from Dr Davis Lukorito Wanambisi nor the email of 24 March 2022, nor indeed to set up the scheme employed in the present case."

Ultimately, the panel reached the conclusion that elite Kenyan athletes are being assisted by someone "with considerable medical knowledge to commit what amounts to criminal conduct involving frauds on the AIU".

"We regard this conduct as a matter of the greatest possible concern and urge the AIU to take all possible steps to establish how this is occurring," continued the AIU statement.

Marathon runner Betty Lempus was banned for five years following a case where it was proved that documents were false, doctors were invented, and that she had never received an injection she claimed to have ©Twitter
Marathon runner Betty Lempus was banned for five years following a case where it was proved that documents were false, doctors were invented, and that she had never received an injection she claimed to have ©Twitter

Doping has become rife in Kenya as there are now a total of 66 of the country's athletes on the AIU banned list.

It has resulted in the Kenyan Government has committed $25 million (£20.3 million/€23 million) to the fight against doping in athletics over the next five years.

"It is clear doping in Kenya is increasingly well organised and these cases underline the reality that medically-experienced personnel are involved," said AIU chair David Howman.

"This is a serious threat to our sport.

"The AIU has been asked to work with the Kenyan Government, Athletics Kenya and the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya to attack this crisis.

"We have set up a Steering Committee to lead this special project and determine how best to use this funding, and the AIU’s expert advice will be utilised across various strategic areas, including testing, investigations and intelligence, and education outreach.

"We are all aware of the magnitude of this challenge and we will do our utmost to find the sources of these doping operations in Kenya; to seek the appropriate punishments and protect the integrity of international athletics."