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Iga Swiatek is the second high-profile tennis player to test positive for a banned substance this year, joining Jannik Sinner. While Sinner, currently the No. 1 ranked man, was fully cleared, Swiatek, who slid from No. 1 to No. 2 last month, accepted a one-month suspension that was announced Thursday.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency said it determined that Swiatek’s tainted urine sample was because of a contaminated medicine she took and so she bore a low level of responsibility.
“These are not cases of intentional doping. These are cases — in Sinner’s case … no fault or negligence. In (Swiatek’s) case, very low end, no significant fault or negligence,” ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse said in a video call with reporters. “So I don’t think this is a cause for concern for tennis fans and the like.”
Here is a look at the details of the two cases:
Swiatek is a 23-year-old from Poland with five Grand Slam titles who has been the best player in women’s tennis over the past 2 1/2 seasons, particularly on clay courts. She won four of the past five French Open titles, including the last three in a row, plus one U.S. Open championship, and has been ranked No. 1 nearly every week since April 2022. Swiatek also collected a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics in early August.
Swiatek’s urine showed low amounts of trimetazidine, a banned heart medication commonly referred to as TMZ, in an out-of-competition test on Aug.
