Michael Saruni gets pinched (as does 29:53 10ker / WXC silver Alice Aprot)

I don't know about that link. This situates the bust with Michael Saruni, Kumari Taki (1500m), Sawe (2xAfrican champion hj), and others.

capitalfm.co.ke

Footballer Osok, high jumper Sawe, US-based Saruni among fresh names handed doping suspensions - Capital Sports

Timothy Olobulu

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 6 – Tusker FC midfielder Teddy Osok, high jumper Mathew Sawe as well as elite athletes Agatha Jeruto, Alice Aprot, USA based Michael Get the latest local and international sports updates, football, rugby,...

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this probably isn't a big enough name for that one thread is it...?

This is big news. Saruni is obviously a big deal -- he's the NCAA record holder in the 800 and a training partner of the world/Olympic champion Emmanuel Korir (at least in the recent past -- I don't know 100% if they were still working together in 2022). Saruni has apparently been suspended since August for failing to take a drug test but we are only learning about it now.

But he wasn't the only suspended athlete. Some of the other notable athletes who are now provisionally suspended:

Mathew Sawe -- Kenyan record holder in high jump (2.30m)
Alice Aprot Nawowuna -- 29:53 10,000 pb (#9 all-time), 2017 World XC silver, 4th in 10,000 at 2016 Olympics & 2017 Worlds
Michael Saruni -- NCAA 800m record holder, 2018 NCAA indoor 800 champ, 2021 Olympian, 1:43.98 indoor 800 pb (#3 all-time)
Michael Kibet -- 7:37/13:11 pbs
Kumari Taki -- 2016 World U20 1500 champ, 2022 Worlds semifinalist.

Had it been Korir- definitely; but like you said, I don’t think Saruni would qualify as a big enough name that was referenced in that bust thread. I think the real question is the +\- link to Ereng and/or Korir. I have no idea of his current training or management.

I noticed the date as well. How was this hidden since August? How many more are being hidden- not just in Kenya, but everywhere?

Here's the full list of provisional suspensions currently in force by the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya, which includes the new cases:

This shows again that when athletes don't turn up for big meets, there's good reason to suspect a doping bust.

Alice Aprot is the most disappointing name for me on that list. She never recaptured her 2016/2017 form and virtually fell off the map which suggests desperation as the main motivator.

It was obvious when he started doing push-ups on the track after running 1:45.1 to win NCAAs indoors

Nabbed by ADAK not USADA. Think about it.

Like Asbel Kiprop, so many of these runners get busted years after their peak, often on the final ebb of their decline. Assuming they were tested more when they were more competitive, this, to me, is the clearest sign of deliberate doping by athletes failing to come to terms with their diminishing abilities. Which is why I've never supported wiping all their times and achievements from the books for a doping bust five to ten years later.

Bit sad about Alice Aprot, I'd wondered a lot about where she'd disappeared to. It was her solo-rabbiting that made the Rio 10,000 the exciting race it was.

I'll have to update my lists of the number of Kenyan male athletes from the 2017 WC now banned. It was 33%, this should put it up to around 40%.

Also, 5 of the fastest 12 Kenyans over 800m between 2016 and 2018 have now been banned ( Kipketer, Saruni, Bett, Manangoi, Kiprop).

If someone is willing to cheat at any point in their career, then to me they don’t deserve a place in the future or the history of the sport. Also, regardless of whether an athlete dopes to achieve their best times/titles, the threat of having these wiped will be a better deterrent against doping than just a ban.

The number of Kenyans getting popped is a huge cause for concern. But at least Kenyan doping control and the AIU are sanctioning these athletes and the local media isn't making excuses for them. I haven't seen any examples of "contaminated food" defenses or coaches and journalists closing ranks to defend a doping athlete. Acceptance of the problem is the first step to dealing with it.