Abeba Aregawi, Former World Champion Runner, Tests Positive for Meldonium

Former distance running world champion Abeba Aregawi's B sample confirmed she tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug meldonium.

The Guardian reported on the matter Wednesday, as Aregawi's agent, Jos Hermens, informed Swedish public service broadcaster SVT of the failed drug test.    

Aregawi had already tested positive for meldonium and was suspended in February by the Swedish Athletics Federation.

The 25-year-old, who was born in Ethiopia but represents Sweden in international competition, won the 1,500-meter gold medal at the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow. She also claimed the 1,500-meter gold in the 2014 World Indoor Championships in Sopot, Poland.

Meldonium has been the subject of doping scandals in other major sports of late.

Tennis superstar Maria Sharapova announced Monday she tested positive for the medicine and had been taking it for 10 years, though the company that manufactures it said a treatment cycle is usually four to six weeks, per ESPN.com news services.

Russian Olympic ice dancer Ekaterina Bobrova, who won a team gold medal in the 2014 Sochi Games, also said Monday she tested positive for meldonium, per the Associated Press, via the New York Times.

According to the AP report, the World Anti-Doping Agency decided to place a ban on meldonium that went into effect January 1, 2016.

Aregawi is therefore unlikely to be the last notable athlete to test positive for meldonium. The recent implementation of the ban is bound to impact others and may lead to further disciplinary consequences across a myriad of sports.