World and Olympic marathon champion Jepchirchir suspended after positive doping test

• AIU investigates after sample tested positive for EPO

• 33-year-old won Olympic marathon in 2021

In a fresh hammer blow for Kenyan athletics, world marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir has been provisionally suspended for doping, the Athletics Integrity Unit announced on Friday.

The highly-decorated 33-year-old Kenyan, who won Olympic gold in the Covid-delayed Tokyo Games in 2021, was suspended after an out-of-competition sample tested positive for banned blood booster EPO.