Romania’s Simona Halep has been provisionally banned after a returning a positive sample

Former women’s world number one tennis player Simona Halep has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for a banned substance in a sample taken at the US Open earlier this year, tennis officials have announced.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) issued a statement on Friday confirming the news that the two-time Grand Slam winner would be sidelined while her case is investigated.

“The ITIA sent the player a pre-charge notice of an Anti-Doping Rule Violation on 7 October 2022,” the organization stated.

“Halep, who has a WTA ranking of nine, provided a sample whilst competing at the US Open in August 2022.

“The sample was split into A and B samples and the subsequent analysis found that the A sample contained FG-4592 (Roxadustat), which is a prohibited substance listed in the 2022 World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List.

“Adverse Analytical Findings for non-specified substances carry a mandatory provisional suspension,” it added.

The ITIA said that Halep had requested that her B sample be analyzed, which confirmed the same result.  

“While provisionally suspended, the player is ineligible to compete in or attend any sanctioned tennis events organized by the governing bodies of the sport,” said the ITIA, which governs anti-doping regulations in tennis in line with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code.

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Source: RT