Top-ranked Iowa State will compete at the Big 12 Championships for men’s cross country this weekend just days after multiple athletes were mysteriously suspended for the rest of the season. The reasons for this unexpected ruling were not announced but there are (unconfirmed) rumors about what happened.
It potentially stems from the use of banned substances.
Iowa State still boasts one of the top cross country rosters in college track and field even without those who are withheld. A final lineup for the conference championship race has yet to be announced but 10 runners are currently entered into the field, which gives us a good idea of who was suspended.
Why are the Iowa State athletes suspended?
To reiterate what I already said above, we do not know the exact answer to this question as of right now. We can only go off of what is being reported by others. Former Division-I track athlete and current track and field media personality Erin Brown claims the ongoing scandal stems from the use of EPO.
Erythropoietin, most commonly known as EPO, is a peptide hormone that delivers increased oxygen to the muscles. The additional oxygen levels delay the onset of muscle fatigue and allows for athletes to maintain a higher intensity of physical activity for longer.
Brown claims the use of EPO is not singular to Iowa State. He says it is being used illegally on all levels of track and field, including high school, college and the pros. This only became an issue in Ames because one of the athletes who got caught decided to snitch. Allegedly.
Whether this account of what happened is true or not, the No. 1-ranked Cyclones announced earlier this week that “a few of their men’s cross country runners have been suspended for violating team rules.” They “looked forward to competing at the Big 12 Championships” and had no further comment.
Which runners are suspended for the Big 12 Championships?
Once again, we do not know exactly who was removed from the team for what. However, we can start to fill in the puzzle based on who is entered for the conference championship race this weekend.
According to the Big 12, Robin Kwemoi Bera, Allen Bonnessen, Emanuel Galdino, Meshack Kimutai, Rodgers Kiplimo, Devan Kipyego, Sanele Masondo, Quinton Orr, Joash Ruto and Ryan Watts are listed to compete in the Men’s 8,000-meter for Iowa State at Rim Rock Farm in Lawrence, Kansas on Friday.
Bera, Kimutai, Kiplimo, Kipyego, Masondo and Watts were part of the team that won the Gans Creek Classic in September. As was Hanibal Haile, but he is not listed on the Big 12 Championship roster even though he also ran at the Nuttycombe Invitation last month.
Seth Clevenger and Isaac Rivera are not listed on the Big 12 Championship roster either after they ran for Iowa State at the Nuttycombe Invitational. Other athletes on the roster did not compete at the Gans Creek or Nuttycombe meets. (UPDATE: a previous version of this article listed an additional runner as someone who ran at the Nuttycombe even though he did not— and is not involved with the scandal.)
Some of these roster decisions might be strategic. Others are directly related to the violation of team rules.
All we know for absolute certain is that Bera, Kimutai, Kiplimo, Kipyego, Masondo and Watts are cleared from wrongdoing because they are not suspended from competition.