Read Halep's reaction to being provisionally suspended for banned substance
WTA
Simona Halep released a statement after she was provisionally suspended by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).
Halep was provisionally suspended after she tested positive for roxadustat while competing at the 2022 US Open. She lost to Daria Snigur in the first round of the New York Slam.
The ITIA announced that after Halep's A sample was analyzed and showed a positive result, the player requested the B sample to be analyzed as well. That, unfortunately for her, returned a positive result, too.
Because of that, Halep was provisionally suspended from competing in any tennis tournaments. Shortly after the ITIA released a statement announcing her suspension, Halep also released her own statement.
The former WTA World No. 1 player stated that she started "the hardest match" of her life. She wants to prove her innocence after she was shocked to find out about the positive test.
"Today begins the hardest match of my life: a fight for the truth. I have been notified that I have tested positive for a substance called Roxadustat in an extremely low quantity, which came as the biggest shock of my life."
"Throughout my whole career, the idea of cheating never even crossed my mind once, as it is totally against all the values I have been educated with. Facing such an unfair situation, I feel completely confused and betrayed.”
"I will fight until the end to prove that I never knowingly took any prohibited substance and I have faith that sooner or later, the truth will come out."
While Halep might lose her prize money and points earned at the event where she test positive, she doesn't care about that. Instead, she wants to prove her innocence, as she worked hard to build an image of a clean player.
"It's not about the titles or the money. It's about honour, and the love story I have developed with the game of tennis over the last 25 years."
