DOPING PROBE ON SIX ETHIOPIANS: Unconfirmed reports claim Negesse has failed test

Invited athletes, Stephen Kiprotich of Uganda (L, 3), Dickson Chumba of Kenya (2nd L, 4), Tsegaye Kebede of Ethiopia (5th R, 2) and Endeshaw Negesse of Ethiopia (3rd R, 5 yellow shirts) start the Tokyo Marathon 2015 withamong other runners in Tokyo on February 22, 2015. More than 35,500 runners took part in the Tokyo Marathon. AFP PHOTO / TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA

Six Ethiopian athletes are being investigated for doping, the general secretary of the Ethiopian Athletics Federation told Reuters on Friday.

Bililign Mekoya said blood samples from the unnamed athletes had returned “suspicious results”.