Former Boston Marathon Champion Lawrence Cherono convicted for anti-doping violations, receives multiple year ban

Kenyan runner Lawrence Cherono has been handed a seven-year suspension by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) for breaching anti-doping rules. He tested positive for the banned substance ‘Trimetazidine’, which is under the 2022 World Anti-Doping Agency or WADA’s prohibited list. Cherono was also found guilty of tampering with evidence and hindering the investigation.

The 35-year-old is renowned for winning the World Marathon Majors (WMM), Boston Marathon, and Chicago Marathon in 2019.

The Athletics Integrity Unit shared the news of Lawrence Cherono’s ban on their X handle. They also attached more details of the investigation to the post.

The athlete's out-of-competition sample was taken in Kaptagat, Kenya in May 2022. In July of that year, it was found to have Trimetazidine. The AIU issued a Notice of Allegation of Anti-Doping Rule Violations to the athlete in Oregon and requested an immediate in-person explanation. During the in-person meeting, the athlete stated he encountered stomach problems and mentioned that the doctor gave him erythromycin and an unidentified injection during that time.

In the email to the AIU, Cherono said his training partners might have been a part of this controversy and accused them of being jealous. The athlete then received a provisional suspension in July. Cherono soon provided a detailed written explanation to the AIU, different from his statement in the in-person meeting.

In this explanation, he wrote that the medication (Carvidon tablets which contain trimetazidine) was a part of his wife’s ongoing treatment at the Wayside Medical Centre. He experienced pain in his muscles post a training season in May 2022 and his wife gave him the Carvidon tablet instead of a painkiller.

The AIU, however, observed inconsistencies in the documents provided (Laboratory request, First Clinic response, and medical report). This included outpatient numbers, medications listed, etc. for his wife.

After seeking assistance from the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK), the AIU had to wait until March 2024, when the court permitted ADAK to get documents from the clinic. The clinic cited multiple reasons, including legal trouble with other patients and more, for not releasing the information.

Following the court order, the clinic said they had no records on the athlete's wife's treatment since May 1, 2022. This led to an eight-year ban for the athlete - four years for doping and four for tampering with evidence. However, due to his early admission and acceptance of the sanction, it was reduced by one year. The ban is now seven years: starting from his initial suspension in 2022 and ending in 2029.

A look into other top achievements of Lawrence Cherono

Lawrence Cherono was suspended one day before he was scheduled to run the marathon at the 2022 World Athletics Championships (IMAGE: GETTY)

Cherono is the eight-fastest marathon runner of all time, with a personal best of 2:03:04 at the 2020 Valencia Marathon, where he finished second. He was fourth in the marathon at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, clocking a time of 2:10:02.

Among Cherono's other notable achievements are winning the 2022 Valencia Marathon, setting a meet record at the Amsterdam Marathon in 2018, and clinching the Honolulu Marathon in 2017, also establishing a meet record.