Former player Rennae Stubbs shared her thoughts on the situation of Simona Halep, backing her statement against the ITIA.
Simona Halep saw her situation go from terrible to worse because she was suspended from the sport for four years. Halep has been out of tennis for over a year now after a provisional suspension due to a banned substance showing up in her test sample.
Since then, Halep has been on a journey to prove her innocence, but things didn't look promising when another doping violation came earlier this year. The hammer came down yesterday when the ITIA announced a 4-year suspension due to a breach of two separate doping violations.
Halep released a statement promising to fight after the shocking ruling, meaning she'll take it to CAS. They can suspend the decision, and that's the only hope Halep has, but even if they do, the ITIA will likely appeal the decision. In any case, don't expect a resolution any time soon, and former player Stubbs sympathizes with Halep.
This is hard to read. I honestly in my heart believe her & hear it in her words. I think her team has a lot to answer for in this scenario. As an athlete YOU are responsible but u rely HEAVILY on your teams to get it right too & on this occasion it seems some blame has to be made
Stubbs is right because tennis players are extremely busy and can't really oversee everything. There is a great deal of trust between players and coaches, and situations like these make you wonder whether that trust was warranted.
Whether she's to blame or somebody in her team remains to be seen but either way, Halep herself is most affected, and that's a shame, especially if she truly is innocent as she claims. CAS will determine.