Nairobi, Sep 4 (IANS): Kenya is backing World Athletics' (WA) new testing programme targeting top road runners in marathon, half-marathon, and long distances.

With the running calendar slowly resuming amid global COVID-19 setbacks, WA's anti-doping watchdog Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) is stepping up measures to increase testing of athletes with Kenya, a long distance running powerhouse key in their testing programme, launched on Tuesday, reports Xinhua news agency.

Kenya, which currently has laws to criminalise doping in the country, has been embroiled in doping scandals involving its top runners.

Some of the country's top athletes serving sanctions for the doping offices includes 2008 Beijing Olympics 1,500m champion Asbel Kiprop, 2016 Rio Olympics women's marathon champion Jemimah Sumgong, and former three-time Boston Marathon champion Rita Jeptoo, among others.

"We have been informed that the AIU is going to organise a number of group testing sessions specifically for road runners. The sessions will be held at a number of locations across Kenya during September," the country's athletics running governing body Athletics Kenya said in a statement on Thursday.