Marathoner Ronald Korir provisionally suspended over suspected doping

Kenyan long-distance runner Ronald Kipkoech Korir. [Wikipedia]

Kenyan long-distance runner Ronald Kipkoech Korir has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) over allegations of using a prohibited substance.

Korir, who clocked 2:04:22 to finish fourth at the 2023 Berlin Marathon, becomes the latest Kenyan athlete to face anti-doping scrutiny.

His suspension comes amid a series of doping cases involving Kenyan distance runners.

Former half-marathon world record holder Kibiwott Kandie was handed a seven-year ban by the AIU over two anti-doping violations, the body announced on June 25, 2026.

The 30-year-old Commonwealth Games bronze medallist was provisionally suspended in March 2025 for refusing to provide a sample. He was subsequently charged with an additional violation involving tampering or attempted tampering with doping control.

In a separate case, the AIU last month announced that Kenyan athlete Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo had accepted a two-year ban after failing to explain the presence of chlortalidone in a sample collected on July 19. The athlete reportedly attributed the finding to accidentally taking his wife's medication.

Kimaiyo, 27, who has a personal best of 58:11 in the half-marathon, began serving his suspension on September 1, 2026, according to the AIU.