Olympic marathon gold medalist Jemimah Sumgong has been banned for four more years totalling to eight after she has been accused of lying at an earlier doping hearing.
The tribunal chaired by Michael Beloff QC, decided Sumgong had committed a second anti-doping offence of “tampering with a doping control”. The case began back in 2017 when Sumgong lied after she tested positive for EPO.
She said that she had suffered a ruptured ectopic pregnancy on the 22-23 February 2017 which had led to an injection and a blood transfusion at a Nairobi hospital. She went ahead and provided anti-doping officials with five fabricated hospital documents to support her case.
The hospital confirmed that she had not been treated there adding that a ruptured ectopic pregnancy is a serious case that would require the patient to be admitted for four days. Sumgong then countered by saying she had been treated by an impostor as there was an ongoing doctor’s strike explaining the lack of a proper record of her visit.
In explaining their verdict, Beloff said he found “compelling evidence demonstrating the athlete submitted false medical documents to an anti-doping organisation and to the tribunal”.
This ban now means she will be out of action until 2025. The athlete turned 34 last month, meaning she is less likely to compete again even after her ban ends.
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