Guilty As Charged: Lechisa Admits Anti-Doping Violations, Gets Three-Year Ban
Ethiopian road runner Hunde Lechisa has admitted anti-doping rule violations and accepted a three-year ban after testing positive for testosterone, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has announced.
The 21-year-old was sanctioned after an in-competition urine sample he provided at the Haspa Marathon Hamburg in Germany on April 26, 2026, returned an adverse analytical finding for testosterone and its metabolites.
The World Anti-Doping Agency-accredited laboratory in Cologne, Germany, reported the finding on July 20, with the AIU subsequently notifying Lechisa on August 17.
According to the AIU’s decision, Lechisa told investigators that he had been diagnosed with anaemia by a family member about a year earlier after experiencing dizziness, but had not consulted a doctor.
He said he visited a pharmacy in Addis Ababa on March 23, 2026, explained his condition to a pharmacist and disclosed that he was an athlete who could be subjected to doping tests.
The pharmacist allegedly recommended an injectable medication, telling him it would be more effective for his condition and would disappear from his system after two weeks.
Lechisa said he injected himself with the medication between March 26 and 28. After receiving notification of the adverse analytical finding, he searched online and recognised testosterone as the substance he had been given.
On September 17, the Ethiopian athlete told the AIU that he had been misled by a doctor and appealed for forgiveness. However, the integrity body remained satisfied that he had committed anti-doping rule violations involving the presence and use of a prohibited substance.
Testosterone is classified under the World Anti-Doping Agency’s 2026 Prohibited List as a non-specified anabolic androgenic steroid prohibited at all times.
Under the applicable anti-doping rules, the violations carried a potential four-year period of ineligibility unless Lechisa could demonstrate that they were not intentional. The AIU determined that he had not established this.
However, the athlete qualified for a one-year reduction after signing an admission and acceptance of consequences form on October 21, accepting the violations and the proposed sanction.
The AIU consequently imposed a three-year ban beginning on August 17, 2026, the date of his provisional suspension.
Lechisa has also been stripped of all results obtained on and since April 26, 2026, including any titles, awards, medals, points, prize money and appearance fees earned during the period.
