DOHA, Qatar — Emma Coburn once again spoke candidly about the issue of doping, this time on Wednesday at a Team USA press conference prior to the IAAF World Track and Field Championships.
On Sunday, footage from German broadcaster ZDF allegedly showed two Kenyan runners getting injected with EPO, a performance-enhancing drug. A doctor also said he treated eight athletes with EPO for training.
When asked about the German reports, explained her desire for a clean sport.
“We train our whole lives for championship moments, and we do it right, and we just have to hope that our competitors are doing it the right way as well,” she said. “Anytime there’s news like that or a ban, I get happy because there’s less people in the sport that will be cheating.”
Coburn, the 2017 world steeplechase champion, has made comments before about specific Kenyan athletes possibly doping. In 2018, she questioned the viability of Beatrice Chepkoech’s new world record of 8:44.32, especially after Ruth Jebet, the 2016 Olympic gold medalist in the event, tested positive for EPO.
In 2018, when LetsRun.com asked about the legitimacy of the new world record, Coburn said, “I shouldn’t comment because there is no proof to prove otherwise, but I think it’s important to look at trends and history of performances, and where there’s big outliers, we might need to pause.”
Coburn will likely race Chepkoech in the steeplechase final on Monday. She said she won’t be thinking about doping reports.
“When I get to the starting line, I’m not thinking about that, I’m not worried about that,” she said. “I’m focused on myself and my race plan and finishing as high as I can.”
Since the 2017 world championships, Coburn has defeated Chepkoech only once. Kenyans have won all 10 Diamond League races the past two years.
American Courtney Frerichs, silver medalist at the 2017 world championships, as well as Kenyan Hyvin Kiyeng Jepkmoi, bronze medalist, will also be competing in Doha.
