Simona Halep has been suspended since last fall after her anti-doping test detected prohibited substances. At the turn of spring and summer, the tennis player appealed for the tribunal to speed up the consideration of her case because she had evidence to prove her innocence. Now Halep has heard the verdict – a four-year suspension. Details in the article below.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has handed Simona Halep a four-year ban for committing two breaches of the Tennis Anti-Doping Program (TADP). An independent tribunal found that Halep had committed “intentional” violations and that “likely doping” accounted for the irregularities in the 31-year-old’s Athlete Biological Passport (ABP).
Among the details provided by ITIA, it read, “The tribunal accepted Halep’s argument that they had taken a contaminated supplement, but determined the volume the player ingested could not have resulted in the concentration of Roxadustat found in the positive sample.”
The two-time Grand Slam winner responded at length to the accusation that she was disappointed with the result and did not want to accept the decision.
You can read Halep’s entire statement here. The tennis player announces an appeal against the verdict.
Halep’s suspension will last until October 6, 2026. The tennis player intends to appeal against the verdict to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, emphasizing that she does not accept the verdict. At the moment, this is the only lifeline for the tennis player. At her age, she is currently 31, in four years she will be 35, a four-year suspension means the end of her tennis career.
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