Kenyan Olympic Committee leader wants to put sports cheats in jail

With dozens of Kenyan athletes reportedly failing drug tests over the last two years, a former Olympic champion and current sports leader in that country wants cheaters to suffer more than just suspensions.

He wants them jailed.

Kipchoge Keino, who won two gold medals during his running career and now serves as president of his nation’s Olympic committee, is urging Kenyan legislators to criminalize use of performance-enhancing drugs.

“The reputation of our sportsmen and women has been tainted beyond any imagination,” Keino was quoted as saying in the Daily Nation.

The issue of criminalization has been controversial in the sporting world, with some anti-doping officials preferring to handle the problem among themselves.

Keino wants to target agents as well as athletes. Most recently, Kenyan marathon star Rita Jeptoo tested positive for EPO and faces a lengthy ban.