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5-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month suspension after testing constructive for the banned substance trimetazidine, a coronary heart medicine referred to as TMZ, the Worldwide Tennis Integrity Company introduced Thursday.
Swiatek failed an out-of-competition drug take a look at in August. She formally admitted the anti-doping rule violation Wednesday and accepted her penalty. The ITIA accepted her clarification that the outcome was unintentional and was brought on by the contamination of a nonprescription medicine, melatonin, that Swiatek was taking for points with jet lag and sleeping.
It was decided her degree of fault was “on the lowest finish of the vary for no important fault or negligence,” the ITIA mentioned.
Swiatek has solely eight days remaining on the punishment, after she was provisionally suspended from Sept. 22 to Oct. 4 and missed three tournaments. The remaining suspension might be accomplished whereas there is no such thing as a competitors, and Swiatek might be cleared to return to play as of Monday.
She had mentioned in September that she was lacking the Korea Open, China Open and Wuhan Open for private causes.
The ITIA mentioned Swiatek additionally forfeited her prize cash of $158,944 from the Cincinnati Open, the primary match she performed after the failed take a look at. Swiatek misplaced within the semifinals in Cincinnati.
Swiatek, 23, referred to as testing constructive the “worst expertise of my life.”
“Within the final 2½ months, I used to be topic to strict ITIA proceedings, which confirmed my innocence,” Swiatek said in an Instagram video. “The one constructive doping take a look at in my profession, exhibiting unbelievably low degree of a banned substance I’ve by no means heard about earlier than, put all the things I’ve labored so onerous for my whole life into query.
“Each me and my workforce needed to cope with super stress and nervousness. Now all the things has been rigorously defined, and with a clear slate I can return to what I really like most.”
That is the second latest high-profile doping case in tennis. Jannik Sinner failed two assessments for a steroid in March and was cleared in August, proper earlier than the beginning of the US Open, which he went on to win for his second Grand Slam title of the season.
Swiatek, from Poland, was ranked No. 1 a lot of the previous two seasons however is now at No. 2. She received the French Open in June for her fifth main championship and took residence a bronze medal on the Paris Olympics in early August.
The WTA mentioned in a press release that it “absolutely helps Iga throughout this tough time.”
“Iga has constantly demonstrated a robust dedication to truthful play and upholding the ideas of fresh sport, and this unlucky incident highlights the challenges athletes face in navigating the usage of medicines and dietary supplements,” the WTA mentioned.
TMZ is the drug on the middle of the case involving 23 Chinese language swimmers who remained eligible for the Tokyo Olympics regardless of testing constructive for efficiency enhancers in 2021.
The Related Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
