Kenya set to be declared ‘non-compliant’ by WADA-BBC

Kenya faces a fresh doping crisis with the country set to be declared in breach of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code later in the evening according to the BBC.

In an exclusive, BBC Sports editor, Dan Rohan claims; “Kenya is set to be declared in breach of global anti-doping rules, the BBC has learned.

“The surprise move will mean some of the world’s top athletes are at risk of missing August’s Olympic Games in Rio.”

The report on Kenya is being presented to the WADA Foundation in a meeting with a press conference scheduled for later in the evening bound to spell out the country’s fate.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, a stunned National Olympics Committee of Kenya (Noc-k) chairman, Dr. Kipchoge Keino offered a withering, “That will be sad news, this would very shocking.”

Kenya passed the Anti-Doping law of 2016 that seeks to criminalise the vice that was fast-tracked through parliament.

President Uhuru Kenyatta signed the Bill into law on April 22 raising hopes Kenya would meet the threshold set to avoid being declared non-compliant.

“As I’ve repeatedly emphasized, Kenya is 100% committed to ensuring total compliance with international regulations on sports and athletics, be they set by WADA, IAAF, the International Olympic Committee or any other International Organisation,” said President Kenyatta during the signing ceremony at State House, Nairobi.

Two days earlier, top Kenyan athletes hailed the passage of the Bill through the third reading in the National Assembly saying the enactment of the law would keep them focused on preparing for Rio.

“I would like to thank our Members of Parliament for finally passing the Anti- Doping Bill. We have been waiting for so long; although the process was slow which made me worried especially when we missed the second deadline set by WADA.

“Olympics Games are a few months away and I hope the President will sign the Bill soon because Kenya is well known in athletics and now Rugby Sevens has joined in making Kenya more prominent in the world,” world champion, Julius Yego told Citizen Digital at the time.

“The passage of the Bill has given us hope and up-coming athletes can focus more on training. Now I can train without any worries for Olympics and I would urge the President to sign the Bill very soon,” fellow Beijing 2015 gold medallist and men 400m Hurdles winner, Nicholas Bett added.

Last month, WADA gave Kenya a one-month extension elapsing on May 2 after the country missed the previous two deadlines to conform to the Code of February 11 and April 5.

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