Ethiopian Runner Diribe Welteji Suspended from World Championships Over Missed Drug Test Allegation

LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Ethiopian middle-distance runner Diribe Welteji has been barred from the world track championships a day before her first race amid a legal dispute over allegedly missing a drug test.

Welteji, the silver medalist in the 1,500 meters at the last world championships in 2023, was set to race in the 1,500 heats Saturday but has now been "declared ineligible" by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

She was accused in May of refusing to give a sample for a doping test "without any justification," CAS said.

Welteji was cleared by an Ethiopian anti-doping panel last month, but the Athletics Integrity Unit, which oversees doping cases on behalf of World Athletics, appealed to CAS on Thursday and asked for Welteji to be suspended until the case is resolved. That request has now been granted.

The 23-year-old Ethiopian would have been a medal contender in Tokyo. Welteji is second in the world rankings in the 1,500 and this year won the silver medal at the world indoor championships.