Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya has revoked the appointment of former World Champion Billy Komintai Konchellah as a member of the Board of the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK), just a week after naming him to the position.
Konchellah, a two-time 800m World Championship gold medalist, had been appointed on August 29, 2025, to serve for three years.
His appointment came at a time when Kenya is battling rising cases of doping among athletes.
However, in a gazette notice dated September 5, 2025, CS Mvurya revoked the appointment.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by section 10 (1) (f) of the Anti-Doping Act, as read together with section 51 (1) of the Interpretation and General Provisions Act, the Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports revokes the appointment of— Billy Komintai Konchellah as a Member of the Board of the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya, with effect from the 29th August, 2025,” the notice stated.
He was appointed to be a member of the National Heroes Council for a period of three years.
Konchellah, born in 1961 in Kilgoris, is best remembered for his gold medal victories in the 800m at the 1987 World Championships in Rome and the 1991 edition in Tokyo. He also won gold at the 1987 All-Africa Games in Nairobi and set a championship record that stood for decades.
Despite his athletics success, Konchellah’s later years were clouded by controversy. He faced legal challenges in Europe, where he was convicted in Finland in 2005 of rape, sexual exploitation of a minor, and drug-related offences, serving a two-and-a-half-year prison term before his release in 2006.
