Former women’s tennis number one Simona Halep (Romania) has been charged with an additional anti-doping rule violation by ITIA, the international organization responsible for ensuring integrity in professional tennis.
The new charge is related to “irregularities in her athlete biological passport”. The biological passport program is a method by which anti-doping organizations monitor various blood parameters of athletes to learn about potential violations.
Simona Halep has been banned from competition since October 2022. The allegation was then related to a banned substance called Roxadustat, which was found in samples taken from a tennis player during last year’s US Open. In a statement, the organization noted that the new charge is in addition to the previous one, but will be considered separately.
Simona Halep did not remain obliged to the accusations and responded with an open letter that she published on her pages on social networks.
“Since October 7, when I got charged by the ITIA for a suspicion of doping, I have lived the worst nightmare I have ever gone through in my life. Not only has my name been soiled in the worst possible way, but I am facing a constant determination from the ITIA for a reason that I cannot understand, to prove my guilt while I haven’t EVER even thought of taking any illicit substance”, writes Simona Halep. “I tried two time sto have the opportunity to be judged by an Independent Tribunal and the ITIA has constantly found reasons to postpone. Now that we have clearly established that I have been victim of a contamination, they came up with a so-called not noral evolution of my blood. Three world renowned experts that have studied my blood tests have been extremely clear that my blood is totally normal”, adds her open letter.
The ITIA said it was continuing discussions with an independent tribunal team and with Simona Halep’s representatives to get the matter resolved as quickly and efficiently as possible, although did not indicate how long that would take.
In April, Halep spoke for the first time since her suspension, saying she was frustrated with the time it was taking for the case to be resolved but the ITIA said “the process is ongoing”. The investigations into failed tests by the ITIA are often a complex process, even more so when a player denies taking a substance knowingly.
“I feel vulnerable, bullied and motivated by them to prove my innocence for something I never committed. I repeat once again: I have been against fraud all my life. This is not in line with my values. My only hope is that the case will eventually be heard by independent and impartial judges at the Tribunal, who will give me a chance to prove my innocence”, said Simona Halep. “I believe in justice and I look forward to presenting my case at the meeting which, after several postponements at the initiative of ITIA, will take place at the end of May. The support of my loved ones, the tennis world and my fans gives me the strength to continue training every day and fight for the truth”, added she.