Simona Halep: Ex-Wimbledon champion’s doping ban lifted
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) reduced Simona Halep‘s four-year suspension to nine months on Tuesday, clearing the former tennis world No. 1 to return to the sport.
The two-time grand slam winner received the sentence in September 2023 after the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) Independent Tribunal found him guilty of violating anti-doping rules.
In a media release on Tuesday, CAS stated that the panel’s unanimous decision to reduce the ITF Independent Tribunal’s four-year ineligibility period to a nine-month period beginning on October 7, 2022, and ending on July 6, 2023, was the cause of the reduction.
The CAS Panel ruled that Halep’s “anti-doping rule violations were not intentional” in their press statement.
Halep expressed her eagerness to resume the tour once “truth prevailed.”
Halep stated in a statement obtained, “I am and always have been a clean athlete.” She continued, “Throughout this long and difficult process, I have maintained my belief that the truth would eventually come out and that a just decision would be reached.”.
The scandalous charges made against me and the almost limitless resources that were stacked against me put my trust in the process to the test. Although it took far longer than I had hoped, the truth ultimately triumphed.
At the 2022 US Open, Halep tested positive for the prohibited drug Roxadustat.
After a thorough evaluation of the evidence, the CAS Panel found that Ms. Halep had proven, with a reasonable degree of certainty, that the Roxadustat in her sample originated from a contaminated supplement that she had taken in the days leading up to August 29, 2022.
Ms. Halep had also proven, by a preponderance of evidence, that her anti-doping rule breaches were not deliberate, according to the CAS Panel.
Roxadustat has been added to the Prohibited List by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for the year 2022. According to the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), this class of drugs known as HIF-stabilizing agents can improve an athlete’s red blood cell count and endurance performance.
In September, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) also revealed that Halep was facing charges related to anomalies in her athlete biological passport (ABP). The ABP is a tool for tracking a player’s chosen biological variables throughout time. CAS dismissed that charge.
The ITIA had previously stated that Halep’s suspension would begin on October 7, 2022, and last until October 6, 2026, prior to Tuesday’s CAS verdict.
According to ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse, “a player’s ability to appeal is an essential element of the anti-doping process, and the ITIA respects both their right to do so and the outcome” (as stated on Tuesday).
“In due course, we will review the full reasoned decision.”
