Marathon world record holder handed three-year doping ban, but time allowed to stand

The women’s marathon world record holder Ruth Chepngetich has been banned for three years after admitting an anti-doping violation, but her record time will be allowed to stand because it pre-dated her positive test.

Kenya’s Chepngetich smashed the world record at the Chicago Marathon in October 2024, clocking 2:09:56 to become the first woman in history to break the 2:10:00 barrier.

She was provisionally suspended in July this year after testing positive for the banned substance hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), which was found in a sample on 14 March 2025, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said.

In a statement confirming a three-year ban, the AIU said Chepngetich’s sample revealed an HCTZ concentration of 3,800ng/mL, significantly above the World Anti-Doping Agency’s minimum reporting limit of 20ng/mL.

The AIU said Chepngetich initially could not explain her positive test during an interview on 11 July and following their investigation, which included analysis of her medications, supplements and phone data.

Chepngetich was also asked about WhatsApp messages received on her phone in April 2024 containing images of vials of Testosterone and Oxandrolone - both prohibited substances and anabolic steroids - with the Kenyan explaining that the messages were unsolicited and she did not respond but may have accidentally screenshotted them.

On 31 July, two weeks after her provisional suspension, the AIU said Chepngetich then changed her explanation, having recalled “taken her housemaid’s medication as treatment” after falling ill, before realising that the medication contained HCTZ.

The AIU said HCTZ is used clinically to treat fluid retention and hypertension. But diuretics, such as HCTZ, may be abused to mask the presence of other prohibited substances in urine.

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The AIU said it considered Chepngetich’s actions to have been “reckless” and that they had been the result of “indirect intent” rather than accidental, and applied for a four-year ban, but her admission resulted in a one-year reduction. The images recovered from Chepngetich’s phone will continue to be investigated, however.

“The case regarding the positive test for HCTZ has been resolved, but the AIU will continue to investigate the suspicious material recovered from Chepngetich’s phone to determine if any other violations have occurred,” AIU head Brett Clothier said in a statement.

“In the meantime, all Chepngetich’s achievements and records pre-dating the 14 March 2025 sample stand.”