Kenyan Wanjiru maintains innocence after doping suspension

Kenyan men’s marathoner Daniel Wanjiru on Tuesday was suspended for a doping violation by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU).

“There was a violation of Wanjiru’s Athlete Biological Passport (ABP), which monitors athletes’ selected biological variables over time,” the AIU said in a statement.

“In doping cases, a Provisional Suspension is mandatory under the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules following an adverse analytical finding for any non-specified substance on the Prohibited List.

Wanjiru, however, maintained his innocence and vowed to prove his case.

“I am clean in the sports I do. The ABP finding is confusing and frustrating me. Specialists have informed me about how this can happen and I have come to realize there can be hundreds of reasons found why HB is fluctuating.

“I feel I am already seen as a sinner of doping, but I am not. I am innocent. It’s very painful what’s happening to me now,” said Wanjiru on Wednesday.

Wanjiru was a surprise winner of the 2017 London Marathon and also claimed victory in the Amsterdam Marathon in 2016 when he set a personal best of 2:05:21.

“I have always believed that those athletes, who are suspended because of a doping violation, were indeed guilty of what they did. But I have realized that being charged with guilt is just easy and now proving being not guilty is hard. I stand for clean sports. My results of the past came through hard work only. I have never used doping. We are currently investigating the case.”

In partnership with ANA and Sports Leo