"Hard pill to swallow"- Emma Bates, who lost to Ruth Chepngetich, slams doping system and criticizes handling of violations amid Kenyan’s suspension

U.S. marathon runner Emma Bates has spoken out after Ruth Chepngetich, who beat her at the 2021 Chicago Marathon, was provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance. Bates described feeling grief and frustration, believing she may have been robbed of a once-in-a-lifetime moment.

At the 2021 Chicago Marathon, held in October, Kenya’s Chepngetich led from start to finish, winning the race in 2:22:31. Bates delivered a strong performance and finished second in 2:24:20, while Sara Hall finished third in 2:27:19.

According to an Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) statement, Chepngetich tested positive for Hydrochlorothiazide in a sample collected on March 14, 2025, which was reported to the organization on April 3. Following this, on July 17, 2025, the AIU issued a formal Notice of Charge and imposed an official provisional suspension on Chepngetich.

In response, Emma Bates shared a photo from the 2021 Chicago Marathon and criticized criticized the handling of violations amid Kenyan’s alleged case, writing on Instagram:

“While I won’t say that would have been me in 2021 or Emily Sisson in 2022, who also placed second in Chicago behind Ruth, to think we may have been cheated out of having that moment is a hard pill to swallow.”

“We may never have proof that Ruth was cheating when she won the 2021 Chicago Marathon or during her other global wins. But for me, it’s difficult to imagine that Ruth and her disgraced agent, Fredrico Rosa, discovered banned substances only after her major global wins. Not to mention that Rosa has had a hall of fame career tied to many high-profile athletes with doping charges," Bates added.

The 2021 Chicago Marathon marked the first time since 1994 that two American women finished on the podium in the race.

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“The system is broken, and there is no accountability” -Emma Bates calls out flawed enforcement

Emma Bates, Ruth Chepngetich and Sara Hall at 2021 Chicago Marathon - Source: Getty

In the aforementioned post, Emma Bates also criticized the lack of accountability in the sport’s anti-doping system. She voiced frustration over Ruth Chepngetich’s alleged use of hydrochlorothiazide, a masking agent that reportedly far exceeded the allowable limit:

“So here we are again, watching the industry’s reaction to the current World Record holder caught with a drug used to mask other drugs. And sure I’d like to say ‘well, let’s wait and see and hope for the best’, that ‘the science made a mistake,’ but again when the drug’s minimum reporting level is 20 ng/mL and the sample allegedly showed 3,800 ng/mL, it kind of cuts through the noise. The system is broken, and there is no accountability," Emma Bates wrote.

The AIU's report indicated that Chepngetich’s sample contained approximately 3,800 ng/mL of the banned substance, which is nearly 190 times higher than the 20 ng/mL threshold set by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).