© Getty Images Sport – Matthew Stockman
Former world No 1 Simona Halep has been banned from pro tennis for four years after an independent tribunal found her guilty of two anti-doping offences. In 2022, Halep was temporarily banned from tennis after testing positive for the anti-anemia drug Roxadustat.
In May, Halep was hit with a second anti-doping charge due to “irregularities in her athlete’s biological passport.” From Day 1, Halep maintained her innocence and continued to ask to be heard before an independent tribunal.
In late June, two-time Grand Slam champion Halep had the opportunity to plead her case before an independent tribunal. “The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) can confirm that an independent tribunal has suspended Romanian tennis player Simona Halep for four years following violations of the Tennis Anti-Doping Program (TADP),” the ITIA said in a statement.
Halep received a four-year ban from tennis
Earlier this year, Halep admitted that Roxadustat entered her body through a contaminated sample. The investigation determined that is partially true. After considering all the evidence, the experts working on the investigation reached “a strong opinion” that “probable doping” is the explanation of what was found in Halep’s system.
“The tribunal accepted Halep’s argument that they had taken a contaminated supplement, but determined that the amount ingested by the player could not have resulted in the concentration of roxadustat found in the positive sample.
The ABP charge was also upheld, with the tribunal saying they had no reason to doubt the unanimous ‘strong opinion’ reached by each of the three independent Athlete Passport Management Unit (APMU) experts that the ‘probable doping ‘ is the explanation of the irregularities. on Halep’s profile.
Halep was temporarily suspended until October 2022, which the tribunal credited against the period of ineligibility. As a result, the former world number one’s suspension will run from October 7, 2022 to October 6, 2026. The case remains subject to appeal,” ITIA said in a statement. Halep can appeal the decision .