The approach to the one-month doping ban for Polish world number two Iga Swiatek brings back memories of the Jannik Sinner doping case and prompts criticism in the tennis scene. “The excuse we can all use is that we didn’t know. ”We didn’t know,” Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios wrote on the X platform: ”Professional athletes at the highest level can simply say: “We didn’t know.”
Two-time Grand Slam winner Simona Halep, who was initially banned for four years by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (Itia) due to a positive doping test and irregularities in the athlete’s passport, was also taken by surprise. “I stand here and ask myself: Why is there such a difference in treatment and judgment?” wrote the Romanian on Instagram.She suspects that Itia has ”bad intentions”. Halep’s ban was reduced to nine months by the international sports tribunal Cas.
The second incident
According to Itia, Swiatek tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine on August 12. The 23-year-old says she took over-the-counter medication to combat the effects of jet lag. The contamination of this medication resulted in a positive test result. Investigators classified the Polish woman’s statements as credible and considered it a non-serious case.After the procedure, her innocence was confirmed, the five-time Grand Slam tournament winner said in an Instagram video.
But just like world number one Sinner, who tested positive for the anabolic steroid Clostebol twice in March but was acquitted of Itia, the public was not immediately informed. According to Itia, it could not be proven that Sinner acted deliberately. Untill now, after the examination has been completed, the investigative commission has made public the incidents of Sinner and Swiatek. The approach is a “terrible picture for the sport,” Portuguese tennis journalist José Morgado told X.
“We deal with every case based on facts and evidence, not a player’s name, ranking or nationality. If a banned substance is found in a player’s body, we thoroughly investigate it,” the statement continued.