Ruti Aga banned for six years after fake prescription tied to positive test

Ethiopian marathoner Ruti Aga has been banned for six years after testing positive for a prohibited substance following a half-marathon win in China in March, the Athletics Integrity Unit said on Thursday.

Aga won the 2019 Tokyo Marathon in 2:20:40 and later returned a positive test for methylprednisolone after her March victory in China; methylprednisolone is used to reduce inflammation and is classed as performance enhancing by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada).

She received a two-year ban for testing positive for the prohibited steroid and was handed a further four-year suspension for tampering with evidence and misleading investigators during an interview, bringing the total to six years.

"Aga attributed her positive test to treatment for a knee injury, submitting a prescription from a clinic that did not exist, issued by a 'doctor' who turned out to be a family member with no medical registration with the relevant authority," the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Thursday. "When questioned, the family member claimed to have used an old prescription pad from a former workplace. But that clinic confirmed the individual had never worked there and the prescription was not theirs."

The 32-year-old has finished second three times at World Marathon Majors.

Aga has been provisionally suspended since 10 September and the ban will run from that date.