http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-01/ethiopia-runners-investigated-for-doping-sweden-bans-aregawi/7210196
Ethiopian runners investigated for doping; Sweden's Abeba Aregawi provisionally suspended
1 Mar, 2016
Ethiopia is the latest track and field nation to be investigated for doping with the Ethiopia anti-doping agency general secretary revealing nine of the country's runners are under investigation.
Solomon Meaza said his agency was investigating five athletes he described as high-profile after they returned suspicious results in doping tests.
He said the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) requested contact details for the other four and the world body is investigating them.
"There is a real concern when the upcoming investigations arrive," he said.
Solomon declined to name the athletes or give details of the substances they are suspected of using as investigations are ongoing.
The Ethiopian cases will be another blow to the sport following major doping scandals in Russia and Kenya in the build-up to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Aregawi tests positive
Meanwhile Sweden's Ethiopian-born 1500 metres former world champion Abeba Aregawi has tested positive for doping, according to the Swedish Athletics Association (SFIF).
The test for banned substances was conducted by the IAAF and a full investigation will be conducted.
"It is with dismay and with extreme disappointment that we report this issue," SFIF general secretary Stefan Olsson said.
"We totally reject all forms of cheating, doping ... we have a zero tolerance, and this is totally unacceptable."
The 25-year-old Aregawi has been provisionally suspended by the SFIF, effective immediately.
Aregawi, who competed for Ethiopia at the London 2012 Olympics, was world champion in 2013 in Moscow, but finished only sixth in a slow tactical race in Beijing last year.
She has also won the European championships and World Indoors gold over her specialist distance.
Aregawi finished fifth at the London Games, again in a slow tactical race, behind Turkey's Asli Cakir Alptekin, who was later stripped of her Olympic title for a second doping offence.
Aregawi switched allegiances to Sweden soon after the Olympics, gaining citizenship through her marriage to a naturalised Swede of Ethiopian origin.
AP/AFP
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https://www.rt.com/sport/334076-sweden-abeba-aregawi-doping/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=RSS
Swedish athlete Abeba Aregawi fails doping test
Published time: 1 Mar, 2016 10:41
Ethiopian-born Swedish runner Abeba Aregawi has tested positive for a banned substance and has withdrawn from competition for the foreseeable future.
Aregawi is a former 1500m world champion. The news adds to a number of controversies that have surrounded the 25-year-old in recent years.
An International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) spokesman confirmed the positive test, which is believed to have taken place in Addis Ababa in January.
"Following notification of the laboratory finding, the athlete has voluntarily withdrawn from competition until the investigations into the laboratory finding are completed," a statement reads.
"In the meantime, the athlete has requested the analysis of the B sample, which will be conducted shortly.
"The IAAF and the Swedish Athletic Federation will not make any further comment until completion of the result management procedure."
Swedish Athletics General Secretary Stefan Ollson condemned the positive test.
"We are totally opposed to all forms of cheating, doping and illicit funds. We have a zero tolerance, and this is totally unacceptable," he said.
There are rumblings in the press that Aregawi is the first of a host of Ethiopian-born athletes that have failed drugs tests, with reports suggesting more African runners are under investigation.
Rumors had been circulating that Aregawi had tested positive, which has now been confirmed. She was due to face off against world record holder Genzebe Dibaba in an eagerly awaited one-mile race last month, but pulled out due to a back injury.
The African athlete has competed for the European nation since 2012, but her Swedish citizenship has come under scrutiny.
Aregawi has been found guilty of tax evasion after admitting she has never lived in Sweden and hence did not feel she was liable to pay tax.
Her marriage and subsequent divorce from Swedish husband Henok Weldegebriel has also been looked into, with claims it was a ploy to get citizenship.
Aregawi won gold at the 2013 World Championships in Moscow, with a modest 4:02.67 enough to win the 1500m final.
The 25-year-old's place at the Olympic Games looks under real threat, with the results of a B sample set to seal her fate.
Should Ethiopia become caught up in a doping scandal, it would follow similar controversies in Russia and Kenya ahead of the Olympics in Brazil this summer
Received on Tue Mar 01 2016 - 06:57:20 EST