Jannik Sinner reacts to escaping drug ban following failed tests for banned steroid
Jannik Sinner released a statement after it was ruled he had not intentionally breached anti-doping rules following two positive tests for a banned substance.
The world No 1 and Australian Open champion proclaimed that he “will now put this challenging and deeply unfortunate period” behind him.
Sinner provided an in-competition sample that tested positive for clostebol, a banned anabolic steroid, during the Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells on March 10. He then returned a second positive test for the substance on March 18 — this time out of competition after Indian Wells.
The 23-year-old Italian received an automatic provisional suspension after each test, but he was allowed to continue playing after successfully appealing to an independent tribunal on both occasions.
In a statement, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) revealed that Sinner explained the substance had entered his system “as a result of contamination from a support team member, who had been applying an over-the-counter spray (available in Italy) containing clostebol to their own skin to treat a small wound.”
The ITIA’s investigation concluded with a hearing overseen by Sports Resolutions on August 15, where the independent tribunal determined a finding of “No Fault or Negligence applied in the case, resulting in no period of ineligibility.”
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Despite the ruling, the ITIA divulged that Sinner will lose the 400 ATP Ranking points and $325,000 in prize money he gained for reaching the semi-finals in Indian Wells.
Following the ITIA’s announcement, Sinner said: “I will now put this challenging and deeply unfortunate period behind me.
“I will continue to do everything I can to ensure I continue to comply with the ITIA’s anti-doping programme and I have a team around me that are meticulous in their own compliance.”
Jamie Singer, Sinner’s lawyer, added: “Anti-doping rules have to be very strict to be effective.
“Sadly the unfortunate consequence is that, occasionally, entirely innocent athletes get caught up in them. There is no question that Jannik is innocent in this case. The ITIA did not challenge that key principle.
“However, under strict liability rules Jannik is responsible for whatever is in his system, even when entirely unaware of it, as in this exceptional case.”
Sinner’s statement explains the Italian was notified in April that he had tested positive for “a trace element of a metabolite of the substance Clostebol” amounting to “less than a billionth of a gram.”
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