Shropshire Star

Simona Halep files appeal with CAS against four-year doping ban

The 2019 Wimbledon champion was suspended in September by an International Tennis Integrity Agency tribunal after testing positive for Roxadustat.

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Former world number one Simona Halep has filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport against her four-year ban from competition for breaking anti-doping rules.

The 2019 Wimbledon singles champion was suspended by an International Tennis Integrity Agency tribunal in September, having been provisionally suspended in October 2022 after returning a positive test for the banned substance Roxadustat.

The tribunal ruled that the 32-year-old Romanian had committed intentional anti-doping run violations with reference to two charges, but she has now lodged an appeal with CAS for that finding to be overturned.

Wimbledon 2022 – Day Eleven – All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
Simona Halep in Wimbledon action in 2022 (Steven Paston/PA).

If the ban is upheld it means she will not be free to compete again until October 2026, by which time she will be 35 years old.

In a statement issued at the time of the ban, Halep said she had “never knowingly or intentionally used any prohibited substance.”

CAS has not given a timeframe for the appeal to be considered, but noted that she would be free to appeal the court’s decision via the Swiss Federal Tribunal if it is unfavourable.

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