Former women's tennis ranking world number one - Wimbledon champion Simone Halep, banned for four years
SIMONA HALEP WAS SENTENCED TO A BAN OF UP TO FOUR YEARS FOR VIOLATING ANTI-DOPING REGULATIONS. The former world number one tested positive for Roxadustat, an anti-anemia drug after last year's U.S. Open.
Roxadustat is on the World Anti-Doping Agency's banned list because of its ability to increase hemoglobin and red blood cells.
Halep has been suspended since July 2022, so the former world number one's suspension will last from July 6, 2022 to July 6, 2026.
Halep plans to appeal to the Swiss Court of Arbitration for Sport, an injunction that could lead to the end of her career (given her 31-year-old age).
She yelled, "I reject their decision to ban them for four years."
The two-time Grand Slam winner continued: "My agent and I have presented convincing evidence to the ITIA and the court to support my defence, including multiple plausible conclusions about my Athletes' Biometric Passport (ABP) test.
"I am grateful that there is finally a result, after countless unwarranted delays of more than a year, but I am shocked and disappointed by their decision.
"I believe in pure sports, and as a professional tennis player, over almost two decades, playing hundreds of matches, winning two Grand Slam titles, I took 200 blood and urine tests to check for banned substances – all clean, until August 9, 2022.
"Before the 2022 hard court season, I adjusted my nutritional supplements based on the advice of my trusted team and physiotherapists.
