Olympic sprint star Fred Kerley’s turbulent 2025 season has taken yet another dramatic turn after the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced his provisional suspension for whereabouts failures.
The 30-year-old American, who captured silver in the 100 metres at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and bronze in Paris last year, as well as a world title in Eugene in 2022, is now facing a possible two-year ban.
Athletes are required to keep their whereabouts information updated to allow for out-of-competition testing. Missing three tests within a 12-month period constitutes an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV).
Kerley’s latest setback follows a difficult year on and off the track. In July, he withdrew from the USATF Championships in Eugene, ruling himself out of the upcoming Tokyo World Championships, a huge blow to Team USA. The withdrawal came despite his impressive sprint pedigree, including a blistering 9.76-second semi-final in 2022, the sixth-fastest 100m time ever recorded.
His 2025 campaign has also been marred by legal troubles. Kerley was arrested twice earlier this year, in January for a domestic assault charge involving his wife in Miami, and again in May for allegedly assaulting a former girlfriend.
Following his May arrest, he withdrew from the Grand Slam Track meet in Miami. His season results include a seventh-place finish in the 100m and third in the 200m at the series’ inaugural meet in Kingston, Jamaica.
Kerley’s attorney, Howard L. Jacobs, has vowed to fight the suspension.
“He strongly believes that one or more of his alleged missed tests should be set aside either because he was not negligent or because the Doping Control Officer did not do what was reasonable under the circumstances to locate him at his designated location,” he said in a statement posted on his X(Formerly Twitter) account.
The AIU has confirmed that it will review the case by interviewing relevant doping control officers and witnesses, a process that could take weeks or even months.
If the suspension is upheld, Kerley’s once-glittering sprint career could face a long and uncertain pause.
