PARIS - Jemima Sumgong, the first female Kenyan to win Olympic marathon gold when she triumphed at Rio last August, has failed an out-of-competition dope test, the BBC reported on Friday.

The 32-year-old, who is also the reigning London Marathon champion, tested positive for the banned blood booster EPO in a test by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in Kenya, the BBC reported.

"We can confirm that an anti-doping rule violation case concerning Jemima Sumgong has commenced this week," www.bbc.com quoted the IAAF as saying in a statement.