BODY:
American middle-distance runner Jonah Koech has received a three-year ban from athletics for blood doping, the US Anti-Doping Agency announced.
Koech, 29, was identified through his athlete biological passport, which tracks blood values over time to detect signs of doping even when no direct positive drug test is recorded. USADA said the case involved "highly atypical blood values in his athlete biological passport (ABP)."
According to BBC Sport, Koech accepted the ban "for the use of a prohibited substance and/or method." Blood samples were collected before and after the US Outdoor Championships on July 30 and August 8 of last year.
Koech had won the men's 1500m at the US Outdoor Championships in a meet record time of three minutes 30.17 seconds, finishing ahead of Ethan Strand and 2024 Olympic gold medallist Cole Hocker. That result drew attention because his victory came as a surprise.
His title has now been stripped. USADA stated that Koech has been disqualified from all competitive results from July 30, 2025 onward, "including forfeiture of any medals, points, and prizes."
Koech has not competed since finishing 13th in the 1500m final at the World Championships in Tokyo last September.
Born in Kenya, Koech ran collegiately in the United States from 2015 to 2019 and became eligible to represent the country in June 2021. His three-year ban runs from the date of his first abnormal blood sample.