Welteji is entered in the women’s 1500 metres, the heats of which are on Saturday 13 September 2025. A decision is expected from CAS before Saturday.
The rush is also interesting. Decision within days? When the AIU appealed the Knighton decision before the Olympics 2024, they let him compete, and CAS only met a year later (and still hasn't announced the decision so he would also be at Worlds 2025, had he qualified (is listed as "alternate" right now).
So the real question is of course why was she cleared? Who was administering the test and was this a miscommunication or some evasion like Mo Aman that we heard of recently.
Or something like with Rollins or Taylor - neither of the two wanted to come out of the airport for their test. The gentle USADA counted Rollins' as a missed test, and the tough AIU counted Taylor's as test evasion (and he got banned for 30 months). Rollins got lucky, as there was no AIU fully established yet to appeal.
We just got the following from the AIU (It's already Sept. 11 in Europe).
AIU Appeals Welteji Decision
11 SEPTEMBER, MONACO: The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) following the decision of a national hearing panel of the Ethiopian Anti-Doping Authority, dated 27 August 2025, to clear athlete, Diribe Welteji, of an Anti-Doping Rule Violation for a breach of article 2.3 of the Ethiopian National Anti-Doping Office Rules (Refusal or Failure to submit to Sample Collection).
The AIU obtained the case file from the Ethiopian National Anti-Doping Organisation on 1 September 2025 and, following review, filed its appeal with CAS on 8 September 2025. As part of the appeal, the AIU has requested provisional measures from CAS declaring the athlete ineligible to compete pending the outcome of the appeal. That application will be heard by the CAS Division President who will determine whether Welteji may compete at the forthcoming World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
Welteji is entered in the women’s 1500 metres, the heats of which are on Saturday 13 September 2025. A decision is expected from CAS before Saturday.
I kind of want them to let her run just to keep Nikki off an incredibly soft podium. She’s not good enough to deserve a 3rd at world champs but given how many aren’t doing the 1500m and the lack of depth over that she’s got 3rd in the bag now.
I would argue we are actually in the strongest era ever of women's middle distance running. At the pointy end, Faith is running world records. And the depth behind her is unprecedented. In 2011, when Jenny Simpson won worlds, NO ONE ran under 4 minutes. This year there have been 35 women under 4.
You’re right. Even accounting for super shoes’ alleged 3.5s for 1500, a huge # of women are running faster times today than before.
Jonathan Gault is your typical liberal conservative hypocrite. He bends over backward to defend Shelby Houlihan even though she failed a drug test, set outrageous PRs during COVID when testing was nonexistent, pushed a ridiculous burrito story, and had Nike's full PR team to get her off the hook. But now he automatically assumes Diribe Welteji is guilty with barely any facts? The double standard is laughable.
With everything else, you are spot on except what I bolded. It is so darn strange that you would get the first sentence so freakin wrong, while everything else you said is 100% correct.
I kind of want them to let her run just to keep Nikki off an incredibly soft podium. She’s not good enough to deserve a 3rd at world champs but given how many aren’t doing the 1500m and the lack of depth over that she’s got 3rd in the bag now.
I would argue we are actually in the strongest era ever of women's middle distance running. At the pointy end, Faith is running world records. And the depth behind her is unprecedented. In 2011, when Jenny Simpson won worlds, NO ONE ran under 4 minutes. This year there have been 35 women under 4.
Have a look at the top times this year and who isn’t competing, Citius had it up today. Hiltz is 7 this year but she’s the 3rd fastest now who will be in the race.
While true... if those 3:48 - 3:51 runners are clean, couldn't they run 3:44 - 3:47 if dirty? And do you think no talented Africans dope (thus don't run 3:44 - 3:47)?
Shelby ran that time back in 2019, before super shoes or bicarbonate. If you look at Welteji’s form, it's clear she's the far superior athlete
Super shoe era really started in 2016.
The era started with Nike's introduction of the Vaporfly prototypes, which were worn by the top finishers in Rio. They were made commercially available in 2017.
Granted, they continued to improve after that and after 2019....Shelby had access to supers.
Jonathan Gault is your typical liberal hypocrite. He bends over backward to defend Shelby Houlihan even though she failed a drug test, set outrageous PRs during COVID when testing was nonexistent, pushed a ridiculous burrito story, and had Nike's full PR team to get her off the hook. But now he automatically assumes Diribe Welteji is guilty with barely any facts? The double standard is laughable.
Actually, the double standard is provided by people like you, who will bend and spread for any and all African cheats as some type of virtue signalling ritual. While excoriating everyone else. Bizarre, screechy hyporites. Throw this Ehtiopian fraud out along with anyone else caught cheating.
The bigger qestion here is why would the Ethiopian federatiin clear an athlete who refused to be tested? So in Ethiopia you can just decline testing and be let go. I wonder how many of such cases have been handled like that. Seems like she would have gotten away with it but was unlucky the world chamiponships were so near they didnt get enough time to cover up the process was rushed
Knighton tested positive for a substance and said it was tainted meat. Welteji blantantly refused to be tested. ADAK suspended kibiwot kandie the very day he refused to be tested despite the embarassmentt AK would face kandie being a WR holder. Many people here critisize Kenya but atleast they are strict when it comes to catching dopers.
Many other countries i have seen a trend where they make excuses for dopers. Absolutely no reason a clean athlete would refuse to submit a sample to be tested. An athlete who refuses to be testes ahould be suspendee immediately. Now i see the reason why its only kenyan athletes being suspended. Smh
Not quite. It was the AIU who suspended Kandie, not ADAK. Just like it was the AIU who suspended Coleman and Houlihan, not USADA.
Well we don't know the chain of custody. Was this an Ethiopian anti-doping test or AIU? You'd have to imagine the former, but I haven't seen ADAK really ever side (publicly!) with an athlete like this. I have seen USADA and others let lots of athletes off the hook. Someone can correct me of course if there've been high-profile ADAK vs. AIU cases at the CAS level.
The suspension was issued by AIU but ADAK was the one Kandie refused to be tested by. If ADAK and AK wanted they would have cleared him also just like the Ethiopian federation did for Welteji