Ukrainian Olympian Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk has received a four-year ban after testing positive.
The decorated long jumper and triple jumper insists on her innocence, denying intentional use of banned substances.
Ukrainian Olympic athlete Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk has been banned from athletics for four years after testing positive for testosterone metabolites.
The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) confirmed that the 30-year-old long jumper and triple jumper returned a positive result from an out-of-competition urine sample collected on December 7, 2024. Her suspension officially began on May 13, 2025, the day she was provisionally suspended.
Bekh-Romanchuk is one of Ukraine’s most successful track and field athletes. She is a three-time Olympian and a multiple World Championship medalist, having won silver in both the long jump and triple jump. Additionally, she clinched gold in the triple jump at the 2022 European Championships and at the 2023 European Games.
Despite the AIU’s ruling, Bekh-Romanchuk has denied knowingly using banned substances. In a statement posted on Instagram, she expressed her refusal to sign documents admitting guilt, insisting on her innocence.
“I refused to sign any documents that required me to admit my guilt because I am an honest person, and my humanity and dignity are important to me,” she wrote. The athlete explained that the ongoing legal and personal battles have taken a toll on her health.
“I can no longer fight on two fronts for my good name before the Athletics Integrity Unit and for my future in my personal life. It is incredibly exhausting, especially emotionally, and it affects my health… that is why I have decided to take a break to focus on my family and my health,” she said.
The AIU noted that Bekh-Romanchuk could not provide an explanation for the presence of testosterone metabolites in her sample. As a result, she will remain ineligible to compete until May 12, 2029.
This ruling is a significant setback for Ukraine’s athletics team, as Bekh-Romanchuk had been one of its most consistent performers on the international stage.
