Welsh marathon runner Josh Griffiths has been handed a three-month ban after returning a positive drug test. The 33-year-old received the suspension from the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) after Benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine, was found in his system following May's Belfast City Marathon.
The ban ran from June 19 to September 18, meaning Griffiths has already served it. All of his results from May 3 onwards have been disqualified, with any prize money forfeited.
Denial and AIU Ruling
Griffiths, who represented Great Britain at the 2017 and 2022 World Championships and ran for Wales at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, denied ever taking cocaine or any other social drug. He could not prove how cocaine entered his system, but the AIU accepted that any ingestion was both out of competition and "unrelated to sport."
Following the findings, Griffiths accepted the anti-doping rule violation and the sanction.
Career Highlights and Response
Griffiths had finished as the fastest Briton as a club runner in the 2017 London Marathon, earning him a spot in the GB squad for that year's World Championship. Having turned professional following that initial success, he went on to finish eighth in the 2021 London Marathon.
In its report, the AIU noted that Griffiths described the initial adverse finding as "absolutely impossible," insisting "there must have been a mistake." Benzoylecgonine was detected in both urine samples he provided following the Belfast marathon.
Evidence and Acceptance
Griffiths supplied details of his movements and location in the run-up to the May 3 race, along with his accommodation at the official race hotel, emphasising he did not participate in any social gatherings, drink any alcohol, and that interactions had been predominantly with fellow athletes and race personnel. At a subsequent hearing, he restated that he had never knowingly consumed cocaine and was unaware of anyone in his circle using the substance before the Belfast race.
Griffiths presented scientific evidence to substantiate his assertion that any ingestion occurred out of competition, something the AIU subsequently accepted.
