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Cape Town - Kenyan marathon runners Viola Kimetto and Joyce Kiplimo have been banned for two years for doping, Athletics Kenya (AK) said Tuesday.
The bans follow the shock revelation in October that Rita Jeptoo, the world's current top female marathon runner, had also tested positive for banned drugs.
The 33-year-old Kimetto's urine sample tested positive for the banned steroid norandrosterone during a race in Macau on December 1, 2013.
"Following the hearings and upon evaluating the details of the case, in consultation with the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF), Kimetto... has been banned for two years," AK said in a statement.
Kiplimo, 26, also tested positive for the same substance at the Yangzhou half-marathon in China in April.
Jeptoo is expected to find out this week results of her B sample analysis, which if positive could also she her banned.
The three-time winner of the Boston marathon and a two-time winner in Chicago is currently suspended after her A sample, taken in an out-of-competition test in Kenya in September, tested positive for the blood-boosting drug EPO.
Five other athletes will also appear before the AK's Medical and Anti-Doping Commission on Thursday for a disciplinary hearing for alleged doping.
The doping offences have stunned Kenya, whose distance runners are national heroes.
