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Kenyan marathon runner Philemon Kimaiyo banned for two years, as Ethiopians take both Berlin titles from Kenya.
The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has banned Kenyan marathon runner Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo for two years after he tested positive for a banned substance.
The ban, announced on 28 September, runs from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2028.
What happened
Kimaiyo, 27, tested positive for chlortalidone, a diuretic that is banned because it can hide other drugs. The sample was taken out of competition in Mwaita, Kenya, on 19 July.
All his results from 19 July are cancelled, along with any prize money.
He said he had taken his wife's painkillers about a week before the test. The AIU found no evidence that he doped on purpose, and it was his first offence.
His best marathon time is 2:04:01, from second place in Hamburg in 2025. He also won the 2022 Prague Half Marathon.
Berlin: a weekend for Ethiopia
At the Berlin Marathon on Sunday, 27 September, Ethiopians won both races. Guye Adola won the men's race in 2:02:50, his second Berlin title. Tigst Assefa won the women's race in 2:11:04, a course record.
No Kenyan man finished in the top 10. Tanzania's Gabriel Geay was third.
The best Kenyan woman was Pascaline Jelagat, sixth in 2:20:23. Ludwina Chepngetich was eighth and Evaline Chirchir ninth.
Last year, Kenya's Sabastian Sawe and Rosemary Wanjiru won both Berlin races.
The next big test for Kenya's road runners is the Chicago Marathon on 11 October.
Sources: (ban), Eastleigh Voice (ban), Athletics Illustrated, Run247 (Berlin results).
That was a Kibra News Network report, read by an A I voice.
The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has banned Kenyan marathon runner Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo for two years after he tested positive for a banned substance.
The ban, announced on 28 September, runs from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2028.
Graphic: Kibra News Network
What happened
Kimaiyo, 27, tested positive for chlortalidone, a diuretic that is banned because it can hide other drugs. The sample was taken out of competition in Mwaita, Kenya, on 19 July.
All his results from 19 July are cancelled, along with any prize money.
He said he had taken his wife’s painkillers about a week before the test. The AIU found no evidence that he doped on purpose, and it was his first offence.
His best marathon time is 2:04:01, from second place in Hamburg in 2025. He also won the 2022 Prague Half Marathon.
Berlin: a weekend for Ethiopia
At the Berlin Marathon on Sunday, 27 September, Ethiopians won both races. Guye Adola won the men’s race in 2:02:50, his second Berlin title. Tigst Assefa won the women’s race in 2:11:04, a course record.
No Kenyan man finished in the top 10. Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay was third.
The best Kenyan woman was Pascaline Jelagat, sixth in 2:20:23. Ludwina Chepngetich was eighth and Evaline Chirchir ninth.
Last year, Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe and Rosemary Wanjiru won both Berlin races.
The next big test for Kenya’s road runners is the Chicago Marathon on 11 October.
KNN Newsroom is the staff byline for stories written, rewritten and edited at the Kibra News Network desk. Where a story credits an outside outlet, the original source is linked at the foot of the piece.
