The racquet sport is yet again at the center of attention, but this time for all the wrong reasons.
After Jannik Sinner, women’s former world number one, Iga Swiatek tested positive for a banned substance (TMZ) in August this year. She even incurred a provisional suspension on September 12, which she successfully appealed on September 22. After that, on October 4, the provisional suspension was lifted and her period of ineligibility will hence end on December 4. Swiatek was found of “no significant fault or negligence” after successfully claiming that the medication she was using (melatonin) had accidentally been contaminated. Is she really innocent in this case?
Well, we have seen quite a mixed reaction coming in on this topic from the tennis world. Canadian tennis star, Denis Shapovalo looked a bit surprised with just a one-month suspension for the five-time Grand Slam champion. Even Simona Halep recently penned down a long note highlighting the difference in treatment. Tara Moore questioned, “HOW WAS SHE ALLOWED TO PLAY WHILST BEING SUSPENDED?” Further down the list, the former world number one, Yevgeny Kafelnikov called for players who failed drug tests to be banned for life.
Even Nick Kyrgios looked quite displeased with Iga Swiatek pleading her innocence. He said, “The excuse that we can all use is that we didn’t know. Simply didn’t know. Professionals at the highest level of sport can now just say ‘we didn’t know.‘“ What does the professor of pharmacology, and director of the toxicology laboratory in Garches, Jean-Claude Alvarez, have to say about all these? Well, during an interview with ‘Tout un matin,‘ Alvarez said Swiatek is completely innocent, and even a one-month suspension is unfair!
According to him, “Iga Swiatek is not guilty of anything! She was only taking melatonin to fall asleep because she was suffering from jet lag. She was trying to sleep better to improve her results. I don’t understand why she was punished with a month’s suspension, we shouldn’t punish her at all. At least in people’s eyes, she would still be innocent.” How did he jump to this massive conclusion, though?“Theoretically, an athlete is responsible for everything that enters his body. But in practice, such an approach is unrealistic, because it is impossible to control everything. An athlete would have to eat vegetables that he grows in his own garden, eggs from his own farm… It is not possible. An athlete cannot be responsible for everything that enters his body today, especially when we are looking for minimal concentrations in urine. That is why we need to set slightly higher thresholds,” Jean-Claude Alvarez argued.
Iga Swiatek’s peers, like Naomi Osaka and Magdalena Frech, also showcased their support towards her in this tough time. Even the American ski racer, Lindsay Vonn, wrote, “We know your character and your fans know it too. We have your back!” So, despite a fair bit of criticism, the Polish tennis star has been receiving a bit of support as well. What does Swiatek have to say about all these controversies, though?
There have been quite a few people who looked quite dissatisfied with the handling of Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner’s doping cases. Take, for example, French star Richard Gasquet recently ripped the ITIA for “poorly managing” Swiatek and Sinner’s cases as he believes the authorities need to be transparent about these types of cases from Day 1.
Amid all these complaints, we saw Iga Swiatek’s new coach, Wim Fissette, reflecting on how “extremely stressful and difficult” phase this has been for the player and the team. However, he also highlighted the fact that he believes Swiatek is a “fighter on and off the court“ and this was just “another tough battle she won.” All they now focus on is to keep supporting each other and work as a team for a better season next year.
However, forgetting this dark patch in her career won’t be that easy for the Polish star, but amid all these, she needs to create the formula to bring her best in 2025! What did she say about the doping controversy? Well, she shared a video clip on her IG account while addressing the whole incident. Iga Swiatek said, “In the last 2.5 months I was subject to strict ITIA proceedings, which confirmed my innocence. The only positive doping test in my career, showing unbelievably low level of a banned substance I’ve never heard about before, put everything I’ve worked so hard for my entire life into question. Both me and my Team had to deal with tremendous stress and anxiety.“
She further added, “I want to be open with you, even though I know I did nothing wrong. Out of respect for my fans and the public, I’m sharing all the details of this longest and toughest tournament of my career. My biggest hope is that you will stay with me.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(513x0:515x2):format(webp)/Serena-Williams-120724-74a4f783be224bde80cdcc2713a13a18.jpg)
