LONDON: The two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep has been banned for four years following breaches of the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme.
An independent tribunal determined the 31-year-old Romanian had committed “intentional” anti-doping violations.
In response, Halep has expressed her intention to contest the ruling by appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, emphasizing her ongoing commitment to training and her determination to clear her name of what she considers false accusations.
Halep’s testing positive for the use of roxadustat during the previous year’s US Open and subsequent findings of using an unspecified prohibited substance or method in 2022, based on irregularities in her biological passport, led to this suspension. While the tribunal accepted Halep’s explanation that she had inadvertently consumed a contaminated supplement, they determined that this could not account for the concentration of roxadustat discovered in her urine sample.
Roxadustat is a drug designed to combat anemia by stimulating the production of red blood cells within the body. Additionally, the tribunal endorsed the unanimous “strong opinion” of three independent experts, which pointed toward “likely doping” as the explanation for the irregularities in her biological passport.
Halep has been under provisional suspension since October 2022, which implies she would be eligible to resume playing on October 7, 2026, at the age of 35. Nevertheless, Halep has expressed her intent to challenge the tribunal’s verdict, emphasizing her commitment to the sport and her clean record in nearly two decades as a professional tennis player.
She disclosed that she had made dietary supplement adjustments based on her team’s recommendations before the 2022 hard court season, with none of the listed ingredients containing prohibited substances. However, one of these supplements was found to be contaminated with roxadustat, prompting her to consider pursuing legal actions against the supplement company responsible.
Halep also highlighted her consistent negative test results throughout 2023, following her initial positive test. She reiterated her belief in a clean sport and her extensive history of clean testing over her lengthy career.
The Professional Tennis Players Association expressed concerns over the “repeated and unexplained delays” in Halep’s case, deeming them unfair and unacceptable. They pledged full support for her in any potential future appeals.
Notably, Halep, who secured the French Open in 2018 and Wimbledon in the subsequent year, stands as one of the most prominent tennis players to face a doping-related incident since Maria Sharapova in 2016. Her impressive career includes 24 WTA tour singles titles and prize money earnings of £32.2 million ($40.2 million). She held the world’s top ranking in 2017 and 2018.
