Will Kenya be left out of the Rio Olympics?

The running powerhouse has been deemed “non-compliant” by WADA

A second nation with a tarnished reputation for rampant doping problems could be left out of the Olympics.

The Montreal-based World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has recommended that Kenya be considered non-compliant with their anti-doping code. WADA first announced this on their Twitter account on Thursday morning, and followed it up with a news conference to detail their findings. Their hopes are that Kenya becomes compliant, but Craig Reedie, president of WADA, said this process could take a couple of years.

What remains to be seen is if Kenya is able to improve its anti-doping program and reputation quickly enough to be eligible for Rio. The opening ceremony is slated for Aug. 5.

The #WADA CRC has made the unanimous recommendation that #Kenya be declared non-compliant with immediate effect.

— WADA (@wada_ama) May 12, 2016

It’s now up to the International Olympic Committee and the IAAF whether or not Kenya gets to send a team to the Olympics. the East African nation dominates the distance running events. Going into the 2012 Games in London, it was said that Kenya had as many as 250 male runners who could meet the open qualifying time in the marathon. Each country can only send three athletes per event. Canada has struggled to produce three marathoners capable of qualifying for the Olympics over the years. Currently, only Reid Coolsaet and Eric Gillis have qualified on the men’s side, and Lanni Marchant and Krista DuChene for the women’s side.