‘It’s just scary’ – Maria Sakkari makes drug test confession after Simona Halep ban
Simona Halep’s four-year ban for doping violations has rocked the tennis world and the shockwaves continue to ripped through the sport.
Former Wimbledon champion and world number one Halep was given an extended ban for two doping offences after a lengthy investigation by the International Tennis Integrity Unit.
The Romanian, who triumphed at the All England Club in 2019, had been provisionally suspended since last October having tested positive for the blood-boosting drug roxadustat at the 2022 US Open.
She was subsequently charged with irregularities in her Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) and both charges have been upheld following an independent tribunal.
Halep, who has taken to social media several times over the past year to voice unhappiness at the time the process was taking, gave evidence at the tribunal in London on June 28 and 29.
She argued roxadustat had gotten into her system via a contaminated supplement but, while the tribunal accepted she had taken such a substance, it “determined the volume the player ingested could not have resulted in the concentration of roxadustat found in the positive sample”.
Halep has passionately defended her position and insists she has next taken an illegal substance, yet Serena Williams is among those who have made cryptic social media comments since he ban was confirmed.
Now former world No 3 Maria Sakkari has raised her concerns over the process that ended with Halep’s ban, as she suggested the app used by players to confirm their location for drug testers is flawed.
“One thing I can tell you for sure is the way they’re handling every situation with any player, any athlete, it’s just scary,” said Sakkari.
“We’re gonna get to a point where we’re not even gonna be taking electrolytes. Thankfully, I haven’t been in that position. I never want to be.
“I’ve been very careful with everything that has to do with supplements. But I don’t know what the process is, how things are done behind closed doors. I don’t know who has a say. I have no idea.
“I would for sure improve the whereabouts app. It doesn’t work well. It’s supposed to remind you every day of your time slot and it doesn’t.
“They tried to improve it, but it’s not working very well. For us, we travel so much compared to other athletes. It’s just very stressful. I wake up almost every night to use the bathroom.
“If that’s close to my time slot, I’m just thinking ‘Do I go? Do I not go? Do I just wait if they come?’ It’s just very stressful.”
READ MORE: Grand Slam winner shares support for Simona Halep and slams her doping ban
Halep has vowed to push forward with an appeal against her ban, as he vowed to clear her name.
“The ITIA brought an ABP charge only after its expert group learned my identity, causing two out of three to suddenly change their opinion in favour of ITIA’s allegations,” she said.
“The ITIA relied solely on the opinions of these experts who looked only at my blood parameters – which I’ve maintained for more than 10 years in the same range.
“This group ignored the fact no prohibited substance has ever been found in my blood or urine samples with the sole exception of one August 29 positive test for roxadustat, which was present at an extremely low level and which, when considering my negative test three days prior, could only have been caused by accidental exposure to roxadustat.
“I am continuing to train and do everything in my power to clear my name of these false allegations and return to the court.”
