Kenyan runner banned for evading doping test

NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenyan runner Georgina Rono, who was third at the Boston Marathon in 2012, was banned for four years on Tuesday for evading a doping test.

Rono, who also has podium finishes at the Eindhoven and Frankfurt Marathons, was banned until Jan. 25, 2027. She had all her results since May 27 stripped from her record in a ruling by the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya.

Kenyan authorities are battling a doping crisis, with more than 50 athletes from the East African country currently suspended.

The extensive problems raised fears of an all-out ban for the Kenyan athletics federation late last year but governing body of track stopped short of that strict sanction after the Kenyan government gave guarantees to devote more funding to its anti-doping effort.

Kenya has won the second-most Olympic medals behind the United States since 2000 but has had serious problems policing its athletes.