Rhonex Kipruto suspended

The problem was he was too exciting. He was putting up crazy times but we're suckers because he was also a little kid. $$$ is all that matters to them.

I knew he was dirty when he absolutely blasted the Peachtree Road Race 10k course record way back in like 2018 in absolutely horrible conditions, 80 degrees and 80% humidity? No problem. What a joke. Ban his coach too.

I thought I read somewhere that the abnormalities were first noticed around 2018? Perhaps I read that wring and that they were using blood in comparison from as far back as 2018?

All Africans are doped.

This was said with Bol as well. Explaining why his values in 2020 differ so much from every year before and after is key to the case. Can you name a defense as robust as this one in an ABP case yet? So let’s see, as the Kiptum ABP ban was different in that the levels were considered outrageous whereas this one seems to be more a conclusion that the baseline levels went to too low a point to explain the consistently high levels in 2018 and elsewhere. I suspect this one is long from over.

It would be interesting to see the ABP of athletes - BC remember that to be banned the threhsold needs to be so goddamn high to stand up in court beyond reasonable doubt essentially.

I bet they look at Kipchoge, Mo etc. and know that they are all doped to the gills, but they can't pop them as it doesn't go beyond into the definitely doping category, as microdosing doesn't cut it.

Look how long it takes athletes to get caught in their career if they are unlucky and get caught for EPO. They didn't fail ABP in the past - but likely have the "fancy bears" likely doping flag next to their name.

I think that's true. It seems the time period of the ABP disparity they are questioning in reference to ABP data going back to 2018 as well as the more recent years, was in early 2020, out of season and no racing scheduled. Reading it, his advocates are claiming that WADA isn't releasing all of the data, specifically the ferritin and Iron numbers. ...Not sure why, but Kipruto's group asserts that WADA is not releasing these details, or releasing with these details redacted. They say that these details could provide an adequate explanation for hemoglobin #s but are prevented from reviewing these even though the data exists. This is definitely not a settled matter.

The guy ran 26 minutes and 24 seconds in non-super shoes. He is doped to the gills lol

Rhonex Kipruto was running absurd times, low 26:20s on the road, and plenty more. Let's face it: Doping is absolutely rife in Kenyan athletics and we cannot trust a single result we see. The major figures to go so far are huge. Kiprop dominated the 1500m for a decade. Manangoi was his successor. Kipruto nearly beat the track record on the roads. Sumgong won Olympic gold. Wilson Kipsang was #2 ever at one point. It just goes on and on. There have been far too many of them to believe anything anymore.

How about that guy who ran 1:59 and reads books?

Or the baseline needs to go down quite low. This one will be very interesting because it might not be a simple case of super-high levels leading to suspicion but low levels merely raising suspicions about high but not excessive levels. There’re two ways to think of that - in 2020 the irregularities showed because the usually very fit/high level Kipruto stopped doping, or in 2020 the irregularities showed because Kipruto stopped training, began drinking and fell way out of shape. There doesn’t appear to be a suggestion that the athlete had testing (or lack thereof) as a factor ceasing an alleged doping programme considering his testing record.

No. Bol was never provisionally banned by the AIU, and his case was leaked before the B test, and there were false positive Epo tests before.

But ya I expect too that they will go all the way to CAS. Seeing the values will be interesting eg in comparo to Kiptum and the others, agreed.

But, baseline too low because of lack of training? Hgb should be higher then, not lower. Unless he stopped doping because he stopped training. That would be hilarious if that would lead to his ban.

Bol was provisionally banned by Australian anti-doping. Exact same status, different governing body and violation. An ABP doesn’t have a B sample it has review by experts. So it’s different but in practical terms a governing body provisionally suspended both athletes and now the process will play out. Shelby was unique in that her B sample and CAS process played out before we heard of the provisional suspension. We’ll see how the levels occurred and are rationalized. I agree it should be interesting.

No mention so far of his 57:49 (3rd fastest at the time) half-marathon at age 20. This guy has been doped since he was junior, no doubt. Casts tremendous doubts on all of Brother Colm O'Connell's program.

This is incoherent with his agency's own defence in the press release. In that document they say he would be stupid to have doped in 2020 when he didn't have races on his schedule and had stopped training as hard/started drinking. Seems like there is an issue with his 2020 blood results too otherwise why try the old "he would be stupid to dope in this window" argument.

It’s truly impossible to make heads or tails of any of this in the absence of the actual data. If there is an adverse finding that is cause for even a provisional suspension, then all of the relevant data should be provided to the athlete and made public. I’m no expert in the ABP, but I’m an MD who does review these sorts of tests every day, and there is a lot of variability over time in a person with explanations other than doping. At the same time, there might be findings that are directional and far outside several standard deviations where normal physiological explanations would not be reasonable. Right now, we are all in the dark. Maybe that’s ok. It’s not reasonable if the athlete is in the dark too.

I'm not naive but I agree that we cannot be sure that the test is 100% reliable at this point.

How is it incoherent? They're saying his level look abnormal in 2020 because he stopped training, drinking etc. Will have to look again but the inference I was getting was that his 2020 markers made his 2018 ones look OFF because of how far out of whack they were with his when he was training and sober.

I’m definitely NOT a doping apologist, but if you are suspending somebody, put the data out there and make the case. It can still be challenged, appealed per the required process. It’s like a criminal indictment. Once the indictment is made, it becomes public and the prosecutors lay out their side of the case at least for all to see.