Ethiopian star Diribe Welteji has been sidelined from the world track championships just a day before her opening race, after a last-minute legal ruling on a disputed doping case.

The 23-year-old, ranked second globally in the 1,500 meters and fresh off a silver medal at this year’s indoor championships, was “declared ineligible” by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). She had been due to run in the heats Saturday and was considered a favorite for the podium.

CAS said Welteji refused to provide a doping sample in May “without justification.” Although an Ethiopian anti-doping panel cleared her last month, the Athletics Integrity Unit appealed the decision on Thursday and pushed for her suspension until the matter is resolved. The court agreed, halting her campaign before it began.

For Ethiopia, it’s a bitter twist. Just as the country looked set to field another medal contender on the global stage, one of its brightest hopes has been pulled from the spotlight.

The ruling underscores how quickly an athlete’s fortunes can flip—one moment poised for glory, the next caught in the legal gears of anti-doping enforcement.

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