Trail Running and Drug-Testing: Where Do We Go From Here?

January 10, 2023

Because there is very little authentic drug testing in trail and ultra-distance running, no out-of-competition testing and often delayed and inconsistent communication among anti-doping agencies, the sport is at a critical juncture with a growing influx of money and professionalism — especially after the results of one of the sport’s most prestigious events were tarnished by doping last year.

Esther Chesang, the women’s winner of the 2022 Sierra-Zinal trail running race, was provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) after it was revealed that the 28-year-old Kenyan runner had triamcinolone acetonide (glucocorticoid) — an anti-inflammatory steroid on banned by World Anti-Doping Agency — present in her system after an in-competition drug test last May 11. Trail Runner