Below, are some African athletes who got banned over anti-doping violations:

Sylvain Gbohouo


FIFA banned Ivory Coast goalkeeper Sylvain Gbohouo for 18 months after he tested positive for the substance trimetazidine.

His ban saw him miss the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Cameroon and will only return in 2023.

Andre Onana



In October 2020, Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana was condemned to a 12-month doping suspension by UEFA.

This was after traces of the banned substance furosemide were found in his urine following a random check.


Onana maintained that he mistook his wife’s medicine for aspirin, insisting he didn’t know the medicine contained the banned substance. His ban was later reduced to nine months.

Blessing Okagbare


The Athletics Integrity Unit announced that Nigerian athlete Blessing Okagbare had been handed a 10-year ban right before the Tokyo Olympics.

This was after she was found guilty of being part of an “organized doping regimen" before she took part in the 100m contest.

She tested positive for blood booster EPO and also later failed a test for human growth hormone.


Christian Madubuike



In May 2022, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) banned Para athlete Ifeanyichukwu Madubuike for three years.

This was after the Nigerian committed an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV), returning an adverse analytical finding (AAF) for a Prohibited Substance (Metenolone) in urine samples.

The Paralympian was handed a three-year ban for failing two drug tests, making him ineligible to compete until 2024.

Thando Dlodlo


In March, South African athlete Thando Dlodlo was retrospectively banned after testing positive for testosterone.

The sprinter was suspended for two-and-a-half years by the SA Institute for Drug-Free Sport, which also saw South Africa stripped of its World Athletic Relay Championships gold from Poland.

Joyce Chepkirui


In April 2022, Kenyan athlete Joyce Chepkirui was slapped with a four-year ban for an athlete biological passport (ABP) violation.

The long-distance runner was suspended after an expert panel found an artificial increase in her red blood cells using a stimulant.


She appealed the ban but the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld it.

Lawrence Cherono




Celebrated Kenyan athlete Lawrence Cherono was suspended from the World Athletics Championships after testing positive for trimetazidine.

The 2019 Boston and Chicago Marathon champion, who is the seventh-fastest marathoner of all time, was suspended just a day before the competition.

Elia Sidame


In 2017, Athletics Tanzania (AT) banned Elia Sidame for four years when he tested positive for the banned blood booster Norandrosteron.

The year before, he had competed in two races held in Brazil and it was after that the banned substance was found in his blood.

Shakul Samed


Ghanaian boxer Shakul Samed’s case was special, although he was still disqualified from the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The light-heavyweight boxer tested positive for banned diuretic and masking agent Furosemide, which violated anti-doping rules.

He was subsequently sent home and it remains to be seen if he will be further banned after his initial disqualification.

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