‘Stay away from supplements,’ athletes warned ahead of World Relays

Kenyan athletes have been once again warned against consumptions of supplements without medical consultation.

Victor Ashiali, an educator from the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) said that the local market of supplements is unregulated hence easy prey for banned substances.

“You should be careful about the supplements you buy and consume. In fact, it is advisable to stay away from them because of how the market is unregulated,” Ashiali said.

Ashiali also reiterated the need to avoid self-medication or non-prescription drugs without seeing a medical professional.

“Leave the doctors to do their job. Most of the prohibited substances are part of the common drugs we use daily. That is why you should always declare you are an athlete whenever you go to seek medical attention,” he noted.

He was speaking during a refresher course for athletes who will be representing Kenya at the World Relays in Guangzhou, China on May 10-11.

Athletes were enlightened on crucial elements of anti-doping, including anti-doping processes and methods, sample collection, the prohibited list of 2025 and therapeutic use exception (TUE).

They were also educated on Athletes’ Biological Passport (ABP) and how to fill in their whereabouts to avoid falling foul of the regulations.

Speaking at the same time, Athletics Kenya (AK) vice president Paul Mutwii urged the athletes to give their all to uplift the name of the country at the global competition.

“I am comfortable with how you have behaved during training, and the discipline is sufficient. We want to see all the teams here qualify for the World Championships in Tokyo,” he said.