A 17-year-old Indian long-distance runner from Haryana has been sentenced to three years in a Kenyan prison following a doping scandal in Iten. Aman Malik moved to Kenya in 2023 to train but became involved in a network trafficking prohibited substances. His family protests the punishment, citing his youth and circumstances.
Aman Malik, a 17-year-old from Sonipat district in Haryana, India, arrived in Iten, Kenya, in 2023 seeking advanced training as a marathoner. Known as the Home of Champions, Iten attracted him for its renowned athletics facilities. However, his aspirations unraveled when he was implicated in a doping operation.
A Nairobi court convicted Malik in September 2025 of participating in a sophisticated, cross-border network that trafficked illegal drugs and supplied prohibited medications to athletes. Authorities seized Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and intravenous equipment during the raid. The court linked Malik to receiving a parcel of banned substances from his coach in India, a former middle-distance runner and social media influencer. The coach maintains he was unaware of the parcel's contents. Malik later expressed regret over advice from senior athletes promoting growth hormone use.
Since sentencing, Malik has been held in a crowded Nairobi jail, sharing a four-room enclosure with 30 inmates. In an interview with the Indian Express, he described feeling anxious, homesick, and alienated, while struggling with unfamiliar food and strict prison routines.
His family remains deeply concerned. Malik's widowed mother lives alone in Pinana village and constantly worries about his well-being. His elder brother has questioned the proportionality of the three-year term for a teenager. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs has arranged consular access, confirming Malik receives treatment in line with Kenyan law. He is expected to return to India upon completing his sentence.