Noticed in that article that the top 3 countries the AIU targets for testing are Kenya, Ethiopia, and the USA. That tells you boatloads about how dirty the AIU thinks Americans are and rightly so.
How is this your takeaway? America has 7x the population of Kenya and a way higher % of the worlds top athletes and yet they get tested 1/3 as much. It literally says in the article that the AIU mainly tests the top 10 athletes in each event + the recent expansion for top 300 road athletes. Reading comprehension not your strong suit
You are too biased as an American. Look at it this way: The AIU targets testing of Americans 2x as much as the Chinese and 3x as much as the British, and we know how "clean" the Chinese and British are /s
You are too biased as an American. Look at it this way: The AIU targets testing of Americans 2x as much as the Chinese and 3x as much as the British, and we know how "clean" the Chinese and British are /s
How is this your takeaway? America has 7x the population of Kenya and a way higher % of the worlds top athletes and yet they get tested 1/3 as much. It literally says in the article that the AIU mainly tests the top 10 athletes in each event + the recent expansion for top 300 road athletes. Reading comprehension not your strong suit
You are too biased as an American. Look at it this way: The AIU targets testing of Americans 2x as much as the Chinese and 3x as much as the British, and we know how "clean" the Chinese and British are /s
America has 5x the population of GB and more elite athletes, sounds like the US is getting under-tested tbh with only 3x Britain. And China is virtually non-existent on the world stage, pretty shocking they even get tested as much as they do. Once again you are spouting drivel.
The article itself feels inadequate and demonstrates the limits of writing about a country from a good distance away on a different continent. There's a reason media outlets and news agencies need foreign correspondents deeply embedded and established in the countries they report on, because doing it remotely is null. This feels like every article ever written about the doping problem in Kenya with the same old statements and tropes rehashed and cobbled together. Pretty similar to Western media's coverage of Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. We have "experts" tell us daily what the Russian population is thinking and how they're coping with sanctions; the only catch being most of those voices aren't actually Russian and are reporting from a news bureau in London or a think tank in Washington. The failure to interview a single Kenyan all but betrays the patronising nature of the approach most Westerners have towards Africa and Africans and the biased lens with which they view the continent.
The article itself feels inadequate and demonstrates the limits of writing about a country from a good distance away on a different continent. There's a reason media outlets and news agencies need foreign correspondents deeply embedded and established in the countries they report on, because doing it remotely is null. This feels like every article ever written about the doping problem in Kenya with the same old statements and tropes rehashed and cobbled together. Pretty similar to Western media's coverage of Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. We have "experts" tell us daily what the Russian population is thinking and how they're coping with sanctions; the only catch being most of those voices aren't actually Russian and are reporting from a news bureau in London or a think tank in Washington. The failure to interview a single Kenyan all but betrays the patronising nature of the approach most Westerners have towards Africa and Africans and the biased lens with which they view the continent.
Pity. Another missed opportunity.
I did actually try asking a couple of Kenyan athletes about this in New York City for the marathon but didn't think their responses offered enough insight to include in the article.
All the NYC Marathon coverage here: https://www.letsrun.com/events/2022/11/2022-tcs-new-york-city-marathon*LetsRun.com the home of the pro running fan*• Home...
I do think it would be a good follow-up article idea to get a perspective from some Kenyan athletes (the coach I interviewed is based in Kenya), but like you said, I think I would need to be deeply embedded to get sources to really open up to me which makes it a challenge. Perhaps a project for a Kenyan journalist to embark on?
The other problem is that even the athletes that admit their guilt and take the suspension don't say much -- they don't want to give up their supplier or broker. I think there's something of an omerta and penetrating that may be the best way to make real progress with the Kenyan doping problem.
Noticed in that article that the top 3 countries the AIU targets for testing are Kenya, Ethiopia, and the USA. That tells you boatloads about how dirty the AIU thinks Americans are and rightly so.
How is this your takeaway? America has 7x the population of Kenya and a way higher % of the worlds top athletes and yet they get tested 1/3 as much. It literally says in the article that the AIU mainly tests the top 10 athletes in each event + the recent expansion for top 300 road athletes. Reading comprehension not your strong suit
Not to mention sprint v. distance athletes. American distance running is not even in the same league as the others in doping. Doping is almost uniform in sprinting, with America having mor of them.
Noticed in that article that the top 3 countries the AIU targets for testing are Kenya, Ethiopia, and the USA. That tells you boatloads about how dirty the AIU thinks Americans are and rightly so.
The article itself feels inadequate and demonstrates the limits of writing about a country from a good distance away on a different continent. There's a reason media outlets and news agencies need foreign correspondents deeply embedded and established in the countries they report on, because doing it remotely is null. This feels like every article ever written about the doping problem in Kenya with the same old statements and tropes rehashed and cobbled together. Pretty similar to Western media's coverage of Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. We have "experts" tell us daily what the Russian population is thinking and how they're coping with sanctions; the only catch being most of those voices aren't actually Russian and are reporting from a news bureau in London or a think tank in Washington. The failure to interview a single Kenyan all but betrays the patronising nature of the approach most Westerners have towards Africa and Africans and the biased lens with which they view the continent.
Pity. Another missed opportunity.
I did actually try asking a couple of Kenyan athletes about this in New York City for the marathon but didn't think their responses offered enough insight to include in the article.
I do think it would be a good follow-up article idea to get a perspective from some Kenyan athletes (the coach I interviewed is based in Kenya), but like you said, I think I would need to be deeply embedded to get sources to really open up to me which makes it a challenge. Perhaps a project for a Kenyan journalist to embark on?
The other problem is that even the athletes that admit their guilt and take the suspension don't say much -- they don't want to give up their supplier or broker. I think there's something of an omerta and penetrating that may be the best way to make real progress with the Kenyan doping problem.
"...something of an omerta"...understatement of the year so far.
That was one of the many provisional suspensions that ADAK kept secret for months (here since August 2022).
Also arguably the biggest fish ADAK ever caught, the first one (800 m indoor WR) worthy to be included in the IAAF/AIU list of big Kenyans banned (along with African champ Nawowuna:
1) Olympic champ + 3x World champ Kiprop, PR 3:26 (EPO 2017) 2) Olympic champ + London marathon winner Sumgong, PR 2:20:41 (EPO 2017) 3) 3x Boston (one DQ) + 2x Chicago marathon (one DQ) winner Jeptoo, PR 2:18:57 (DQ) (EPO 2014) 4) Boston + Chicago marathon winner Cherono, PR 2:03:04 (trimetazidine 2022) 5) London + Amsterdam marathon winner D. Wanjiru, PR 2:05:21 (ABP 2019) 6) Boston marathon winner Kipyokei, PR 2:22:06 (triamcinolone acetonide 2022) 7) Half marathon world record holder Kiptum, PR 58:18 (DQ) (ABP 2019) 8) Third fastest half marathon runner Kisorio back then, PR 58:46 (norandrosterone 2012 + whereabouts 2022) 9) Ranked 2nd in road running Renju, PRs 26:57/58:35 (methasterone 2022) 10) African champ Kipkemoi, PRs 26:52/59:01/2:05:44 (terbutaline 2019) 11) 2x Rotterdam + Abu Dhabi winner Kipserem, PR 2:04:04 (EPO 2022) 12) Tokyo winner Chepchirchir, PR 2:19:47 (ABP 2019) 13) 2x Seoul marathon winner Loyanae, PR 2:05:13 (EPO 2013) 14) Commonwealth + African champ Chepkirui, PRs 30:37/1:06:19 (ABP 2019) 15) Commonwealth + African champ Omanyala, PR 9.77 (betamethasone 2017) 16) 2x 2nd in Chicago and sub-2 pacer Kitwara, PRs 58:48/2:04:28 (terbutaline 2019) 17) Sub-2 pacer Kacheran, PR 2:05:19 (testosterone 2022)
18) African Games 10,000 m winner Alice Nawowuna, PRs 14:39/29:53 (letrozole 2023) - ADAK
Honorable mentions 19) 3000 m steeple world record holder and Olympic champ Jebet, Bahraini-turned Kenyan, PR 8:52.78 (EPO 2017) 20) Olympic silver medalist Kirwa, Bahraini-turned Kenyan, PR 2:21:17 (EPO 2017)
Plus banned for whereabouts failures/test refusion (and tampering in case of Kipsang) 21) Marathon world record holder, 2x London + Berlin + New York + Tokyo marathon winner Kipsang, PR 2:03:13 (banned 2020) 22) World champ E. Manangoi, PR 3:28.80 (banned 2020) 23) Sub-2 pacer Korio, PR 58:51 (banned 2022) 24) Gachaga, PRs 59:22/2:05:09 (banned 2022) 25) 600 m indoor WR Michael Saruni, PRs 1:43.25 (test evading/refusing 2023) - ADAK
"...something of an omerta"...understatement of the year so far.
+1
What also came short in the article, is the published AIU FAQ about Kenyan doping, including:
Kenyan doping is not centralised; however, it is becoming increasingly more sophisticated. Because of the financial incentives to dope, there is a free market demand for doping products and methods and many persons are willing to supply the athletes. These transactions range from the very basic supply of products to more sophisticated networks of conspirators coming together to use methodologies to avoid detection.
The article itself feels inadequate and demonstrates the limits of writing about a country from a good distance away on a different continent. There's a reason media outlets and news agencies need foreign correspondents deeply embedded and established in the countries they report on, because doing it remotely is null. This feels like every article ever written about the doping problem in Kenya with the same old statements and tropes rehashed and cobbled together. Pretty similar to Western media's coverage of Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. We have "experts" tell us daily what the Russian population is thinking and how they're coping with sanctions; the only catch being most of those voices aren't actually Russian and are reporting from a news bureau in London or a think tank in Washington. The failure to interview a single Kenyan all but betrays the patronising nature of the approach most Westerners have towards Africa and Africans and the biased lens with which they view the continent.
Pity. Another missed opportunity.
I did actually try asking a couple of Kenyan athletes about this in New York City for the marathon but didn't think their responses offered enough insight to include in the article.
I do think it would be a good follow-up article idea to get a perspective from some Kenyan athletes (the coach I interviewed is based in Kenya), but like you said, I think I would need to be deeply embedded to get sources to really open up to me which makes it a challenge. Perhaps a project for a Kenyan journalist to embark on?
The other problem is that even the athletes that admit their guilt and take the suspension don't say much -- they don't want to give up their supplier or broker. I think there's something of an omerta and penetrating that may be the best way to make real progress with the Kenyan doping problem.
Hey Gault, how’s your investigation of Shelby going?
When I said in 2015 that a lot of top kenyans are doping, I was met with resistance, name calling and labeled a conspiracy theorist. Not my first rodeo, I guess. That's the price you pay for getting ahead of the stories all the time.
Another area to look at would be how many of the tests are in comp versus out, who is administering them and which agency tests are resulting in busts. I suspect there is a lack of out of competition tests in general and that countries (kenya but others too) are not catching their own athletes so much.
At least we now have proof Kenyans are tested more than every other country in the world. The lie here used to be that Kenyan testing wasn't up to par.