Fred Kerley’s Days Are Numbered at Track & Field as Recent Setback Draws Deeper Problems

Things have gone south for Fred Kerley again. The U.S. Olympic 100m silver medalist and 2022 world champion has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit for three whereabouts failures in 12 months, announced today. These missed or misreported locations for anti-doping tests breach strict regulations and can lead to a ban of up to two years. The suspension halts his competition eligibility pending a hearing to determine the validity and seriousness of the alleged violations. But he, himself, has responded to it.

Kerley has vowed to fight the charges, claiming at least one failure was not his fault and may have resulted from testing officials’ errors. His legal team hopes to overturn or reduce the sanction. On his Instagram broadcast channel, he has said, “I want to be clear – I have never used performance-enhancing drugs, and I have always competed clean.” The suspension adds to a turbulent 2025, during which he withdrew from the U.S. Trials, citing personal hurdles, and faced unrelated legal troubles, making this latest setback a significant blow to his career momentum. Thinking of all that, a track and field pundit has called out some bigger problems in there.

“I wish Fred Kerley the best and want to see him compete, but when I say things are not looking good, I mean, let’s just, you know, get this out there that people want to see him competing like himself. Fred Kerley is actually one of the greatest talents that we have in track and field, and an athlete like him is actually robbed by the current system,” explained track and field pundit and coach Rob in his latest YouTube video that aired today. Rob praised Kerley for his performances, like his 44.73 at the Mt. SAC Relays in April, but he pointed out a much bigger problem as well.

The track and field coach said, “He has gold, silver, and bronze in his chest, like he collected all of them, and 2025, again, we knew we weren’t going to see him at the Worlds this year. We didn’t know if we were going to see him on the track again.” The concern is valid because he is already 30 years old, and with age, the legs are only going to get slower. Plus, this season, we have seen that he has been selective about events as well. His last competition before the provisional suspension was at the Grand Sprint Series in Norwalk, California, where he clocked 10.19 seconds to win the men’s 100m final.

But that was in the earlier half of July, almost a month before the AIU suspension came. Also, he is not what he used to be. Kerley’s clock has slowed down. In the Kingston GST 100m race, he was 7th with a time of 10.30s. Mind is this is a world champion. He appeared to regain some rhythm at the APU Franson Last Chance meet, smashing the 10-second barrier three times within 24 hours, posting wind-aided splits of 9.95s, a blistering 9.87s, and sealing the final with a legal 9.98s. Yet that comeback was short-lived.

Most of his season has hovered in the 10-second range, 10.07 in Rabat and 10.19 in California, far from the sub-10 gold-medal pace we associate with him. And let’s not forget the legal trouble he has been having since the year began. In January, he was involved in a confrontation with Miami Beach police that ended with him being tasered and arrested. Then in May, just before the Miami leg of the Grand Slam Track circuit, Kerley was arrested again, this time on a battery charge involving his ex-girlfriend, fellow Olympian Alaysha Johnson. The AIU suspension is going to shorten the track his career is not, but it might as well go deeper into the sport itself.

Fred Kerley’s suspension might go deeper into track and field

In the same video, Coach Rob did not talk of Fred much but the implication of this suspension. He said, “The Fred Kerley situation is, you know, very unique, you know, this year has gone far away from ideal when it comes to him, but he’s just one athlete in a larger sport ecosystem. The fact that, you know, nobody really knows what the provisional suspensions are, when they’re gonna end.” He further stressed the fact that many athletes have faced this suspension and have come back.

Gabby Thomas received a provisional suspension for alleged whereabouts violations in May 2020, but in June was able to present evidence, including phone tracking data and witness statements that showed she was at the correct location and that the doping control officer failed to follow protocol. The AIU cleared her, and her suspension was promptly lifted. He further added that, “This (Kerley’s suspension) might be one of the moments where the provisional suspension happens, it gets peeled back like it never happened at all, and we just act like it wasn’t a thing, but it is.” Why? He explains.

He explained that controversies like provisional suspensions risk alienating casual fans of track and field, the kind who might only watch major events like the Olympics, enjoy seeing athletes compete, and then move on. When those same fans later hear negative news about the athletes they just admired, it can sour their impression of the sport and make them less likely to watch future races. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments below.