One reason why we have so many doping cases in Kenya is simply the fact that we have far more top athletes than in Western countries. For example, last year—or, well, we had five times as many doping cases in Kenya as in the USA. But in Kenya, we also have 21 times as many marathon runners who ran under 2 hours 10 last year than in the entire USA combined. And in no other country are there so many athletes who are tested so frequently and strictly as in Kenya. That’s why it’s clear that, naturally, more people are also caught.
And as Renato Canova already correctly said, you can’t compare doping in Kenya with doping in Europe. I’m from Germany, I was in Kenya, training, had a cold, and went to the pharmacy. The pharmacist gave me nasal drops and a pill—no packaging, no leaflet. He just cut a single pill out of the blister and put it in my hand. When I got home and looked up these medications online—the nasal drops and the tablet—they turned out to be ordinary cold medicine. But they contained substances that would test positive in a doping test.
As an educated German athlete, of course I wouldn’t have taken something like that, but a perhaps naive Kenyan, who hasn’t been in school since elementary, would most likely take it without questioning it.
There is more antidoping testing in Kenya because it is seen to have a serious doping problem. It has been targeted. That is why more of their athletes are caught.
The USA is the clear doping leader and yet it's athletes rarely get caught because its athletic federations are also much more professional at cheating than those in less developed nations. Cheating well requires infrastructure.
Wightman showed a steady build up of improvement from a relatively slow start. He wasn't seen as a dark horse when he won the WC. He was already a known quantity. So it wasn't the kind of 'WTF' response Nader's victory has had. His years of battling with injury explain his subsequent decline, just as his recovery explains his return to the top level of his event.
But ask yourself this question: why has no one who follows the sport been surprised at what he has achieved while Nader has provoked astonishment and disbelief here - as well as immediate speculation about he has done it? Their two cases aren't the same. Add to that Nader's background in coming from a country (Morocco) that has had significant doping issues as well as coaches with doping question marks elicits further scepticism. He looks too good to be true (including his off the charts finish) - but only now and at these Games. It reminds of runners like Katir and Ramzi. I wouldn't be surprised if he turns out like them.
Nader is not from Morocco, you ignorant ass. He is Portuguese, born in Faro from a Portuguese mother.
And a Moroccan father. He is also coached by Cacho's former coach, who was allegedly part of the doping in Spanish sport that led to Spain's astonishing results in Barcelona, when they increased their medal tally tenfold from what they had done in past Olympics.
But what I question is his success today after years of relative non achievement in the sport. Until aged 26 and these championships he showed only the talent of a journeyman. No one on these threads, or anywhere else it was discussed, saw him as the winner in Tokyo, who was also able to finish the race in a way only the greatest kickers in the sport have done. I am reminded of Ramzi and Katir. It invites scepticism.
One reason why we have so many doping cases in Kenya is simply the fact that we have far more top athletes than in Western countries. For example, last year—or, well, we had five times as many doping cases in Kenya as in the USA. But in Kenya, we also have 21 times as many marathon runners who ran under 2 hours 10 last year than in the entire USA combined. And in no other country are there so many athletes who are tested so frequently and strictly as in Kenya. That’s why it’s clear that, naturally, more people are also caught.
And as Renato Canova already correctly said, you can’t compare doping in Kenya with doping in Europe. I’m from Germany, I was in Kenya, training, had a cold, and went to the pharmacy. The pharmacist gave me nasal drops and a pill—no packaging, no leaflet. He just cut a single pill out of the blister and put it in my hand. When I got home and looked up these medications online—the nasal drops and the tablet—they turned out to be ordinary cold medicine. But they contained substances that would test positive in a doping test.
As an educated German athlete, of course I wouldn’t have taken something like that, but a perhaps naive Kenyan, who hasn’t been in school since elementary, would most likely take it without questioning it.
So are common cold medications in Kenya laced with EPO and anabolic steroids?
I am just not sure what to believe. In the 1990s when doping accusations of Kenyan runners started to become more frequent I read that Kenyans were very wary of taking any sorts of pharmaceutical products and would not even take an aspirin to treat symptoms arising from malaria. I believed that narrative back then.
Then 10 or 15 years later when a few PED busts from Kenya started to come in, I read that Kenyans were using things like EPO to treat their malaria symptoms and were not intentionally using them as PEDs. This story seemed a bit more unlikely but I accepted it at face value.
But with the absolute truckload of doping positives coming in from Kenya these last 5 to 10 years I am much more sceptical of what people are telling us. It seems that running provides a way out of poverty in Kenya (in contrast, elite-level running is mostly a financial sacrifice for someone to make in a Western country) and that PEDs will help enhance performance and give the runners a competitive edge. So it's just logical that you are going to have a high number of runners doping under those circumstances especially as getting caught will not lead to any significant punishment. For example, has any busted Kenyan given back their prize money earned from the sport?
What? I don't know, and neither have I read, anyone who saw Nader even close to the podium! He was crap in 23 and 24 global champs, and crap at the 24 Euro champs. Improved his times and performances this year, basically out of no-where...