Nairobi (AFP)
Two Kenyan athletes have been thrown out of the national squad for the Doha Worlds (September 27-October 6) after testing for testosterone levels too high, the Kenyan Athletics Federation said on Friday. AK).
Jackline Wambui, who won the 800-meter Kenyan selection on 13 September beating her personal best in 1: 58.79, and Linda Kageha, who was third in the 400-meter, qualified for Doha.
But the two athletes have passed tests that showed that their testosterone levels were higher than the limits set by the International Athletics Federation (IAAF), told AFP Paul Mutwii, the vice president of AK in charge competitions.
"All the female athletes on the team (selected for Doha) were tested for blood after the national selections in Nairobi on September 13. And the doctors found that Wambui and Kageha each had high levels of testosterone." he declared.
"As a result, they can not compete in Doha after the IAAF's decision to exclude female athletes with high levels of testosterone for 400m-mile races." he adds.
It is too late for both athletes to be replaced. Kenya will be represented only by Hellen Syombua and Mary Moraa on 400 m, and by Eunice Sum on 800 m.
In May, two Kenyan athletes, Maximilla Imali and Evangeline Makena, had been deprived for the same reasons of the Relay Worlds held in Yokohama, Japan.
The new IAAF rules, which came into effect on May 8, require hyperandrogenic athletes (having a difference in sexual development) to lower their testosterone levels with medication, for races ranging from 400m to the mile. .
The most famous victim of this new regulation is Caster Semenya, double Olympic champion and triple world champion in the 800 meters. Despite lengthy legal proceedings, the South African could not have it invalidated in time for Doha. Refusing to follow a treatment, she will not participate in the Worlds.
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