Just a year ago, at the 2024 Chicago Marathon, Ruth Chepng’etich stormed through the finish line in a jaw-dropping 2:09:56 and became the fastest woman ever over 26.2 miles. But a year later, that record now stands in the shadows of a controversy. Ruth Chepng’etich has been handed a three-year ban for testing positive for a banned substance, Hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ).

HCTZ is a chemical that is marked as a banned diuretic or masking agent by AIU. Yet, despite the doping violation, Chepng’etich’s record remains untouched. Why so? Because the Hydrochlorothiazide was found in her samples in an unsafe amount months after she ran the 2024 Chicago Marathon to shatter the world record. But a new chapter in the story is igniting fierce debate across the athletics world. A chapter that might make

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