Seb Coe ready to crack down on Kenya, could ban athletes from Olympics

Russia has constantly been making the headlines for doping violations and received a ban from all international competition. Could Kenya be next?

Seb Coe

In the midst of the Russian doping scandal, the IAAF president, Sebastian Coe isn’t turning a blind eye to other nations that are suspected of not complying with the world anti-doping code.

Kenya has for a long time been suspected of using banned substances to get its athletes to podium positions and as Russia’s wrongdoing in sport has been exposed resulting in the nation receiving a ban from all international competition, many are wondering what’s to happen with Kenya.

RELATED: New WADA report calls IAAF organizational failure, doesn’t cover East African doping

This week Coe has come out with some strong words about the country which missed a WADA deadline last week where they were supposed to show that they were tackling cheating head on.

He says that going forward, WADA and the IAAF need to be “proactive” in dealing with counties suspected of not complying with the anti-doping rules. With several positive tests along with the missed deadline, Kenya has been placed on WADA’s “watch list.” And according to the BBC, Coe says they will be booted out of the Olympics and World Championships just like Russia if need be.

These statements also come after the chief of Athletics Kenya, Isaac Mwangi, announced that he wants to temporarily step down from his post. That would last about 21 days if he goes through with it.

Likely this move is tied to allegations that he has asked athletes for bribes to shorten doping bans, says the BBC. As of now though, he denies this.

The IAAF has been pushing Kenya to take a stronger approach to catching doping suggesting that the country conduct more tests on its athletes. Progress in this area has been coming along slowly.

Check out the latest buyer's guide:

The best trainers in Canada under $150

We curated the best performance trainers under $150 to meet your 2024 running goals, while staying on budget