Even after the end of the season, the doping cases of Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek are being discussed in the tennis scene. An expert sharply criticizes the Polish woman’s behavior and the ATP and WTA’s handling of the issue.
“In Iga’s case, we were told that she was taking time off to work with her coach on various aspects of her game. That was not the case. That was simply a blatant lie,” renowned journalist Jason Goodall rumbled in one Discussion panel at the “Tennis Channel”.
“We didn’t know she was serving a ban. Why didn’t we know? Just tell the truth!” added the former tennis professional.
“And if there are questions to answer, who are the contacts at ATP and the WTA? Who can we ask? I want more transparency. I don’t want any secret bans,” said Goodall, referring to the umbrella organizations.
Iga Swiatek tested positive for the banned drug trimetazidine on August 12th, but the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) only made this public at the end of November. According to the regulators’ assessment, this was a less serious case. The 23-year-old was therefore only banned for a month.
Tennis: Swiatek serves most of the suspension “secretly”.
The world number two stated that she had taken the substance unintentionally. The origin is said to have been contamination of a non-prescription medication that she had taken for jet lag and sleep problems, Swiatek confirmed. The ITIA rated the statements as credible.
During the publication by the ITIA, it also became known that Swiatek had already served a large part of her ban between September 22nd and October 4th. She was officially absent during this time because of the reasons Goodall now criticizes.
The Sinner case was also made public by the ITIA in the first few weeks after his positive test for the steroid Clostebol in the spring.
An independent court initially acquitted the Italian, but the World Anti-Doping Agency protested against the proceedings. The International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) is currently dealing with the case. A verdict is eagerly awaited.
Source: www.sport.de
