A former London Marathon winner received a lifetime ban from the race
Former London Marathon winner Liliya Shobukhova was ordered to pay back her prize money after receiving a doping ban. The Russian long-distance runner finished first in the marquee London race in 2010.
Shobukhova began her athletic career as a middle-distance runner, earning silver medals at the European Championships and the World Indoor Championships, before moving into marathon racing. She quickly proved to be elite in the discipline, winning her first of three consecutive Chicago Marathon titles in 2009.
The 48-year-old triumphed at the 2010 London Marathon with a time of two hours and 22 minutes, finishing 30 seconds ahead of Ethiopia’s Aselefech Mergia. However, a doping ban later saw Shobukhova stripped of her victory and handed a lifetime ban from the race.
In 2014, the Russian Athletics Federation announced that abnormalities had been discovered in Shobukhova’s biological passport. Consequently, all of her results dating back to October 9, 2009, were annulled.
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The former London Marathon winner was initially handed a 38-month suspension. However, the punishment was reduced by seven months due to her cooperation with the investigation carried out by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
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Shobukhova’s suspension ended in August 2015. She was later ordered to return the almost £378,000 earned from her appearance fees and prize money at the London Marathons in 2010 and 2011, when she also finished runner-up.
“Cheats should not benefit,” London Marathon Events Ltd chief Nick Bitel said in June 2016. “It will be a long and difficult process but we will pursue it.
“Any money we get back will be redistributed to the athletes that Shobukhova cheated out of their rightful dues.
“We are determined to make marathon running a safe haven from doping. We will continue to do everything we can to ensure cheats are caught and do not benefit from cheating.”
In addition to her ban from the London Marathon, Shobukhova was barred from the other World Marathon Majors. These included races in Tokyo, Boston, Berlin, Chicago and New York City at the time.
One of the highlights of her marathon career was setting a Russian record while winning her third Chicago Marathon in 2011. Her time of two hours 18 minutes and 20 seconds made her the second-fastest female marathon runner in history, behind Paula Radcliffe.
British sporting icon Radcliffe issued a message on social media about Shobukhova’s ban in 2014. The 52-year-old posted on Twitter that Shobukhova was “finally exposed as a drug cheat”.
The annual TCS London Marathon is set to take place on Sunday, April 26. It will be the 46th edition of the famous race.
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