2023-09-15 01:13:22
The former “world number one” in women’s tennis and two-time Grand Slam champion, 31-year-old Romanian player Simona Halep, was banned for four years for taking a banned drug, Roxadustat. (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
[The Epoch Times, September 15, 2023](Comprehensive report by Epoch Times reporter Wang Youzhi) In recent times, doping scandals have broken out in the world sports world. Former women’s tennis “world No. 1” and two-time Grand Slam champion, 31-year-old Simona Halep, was banned for four years for taking banned substances. The 30-year-old French star Paul Pogba, who currently plays for Serie A giant Juventus, tested positive for testosterone in a doping test and was suspended and is awaiting further punishment.
Halep banned for four years
Last year at the US Open, Halep, who was ranked ninth in the world at the time, lost to Snigur in the first round and was upset. Subsequently, the Romanian announced that he would undergo nasal plastic surgery, ending the 2022 season early. The International Tennis Integrity Agency soon issued an official statement saying that Halep’s doping test during the US Open showed that there was an ingredient in the banned drug Roxadustat in her urine, and she was temporarily suspended. Afterwards, Halep asked for a test on the urine sample of bottle B, and the result was still positive.
Haller said he was shocked and revealed that the urine sample contained extremely low levels of stimulants. She argued that she had never knowingly taken any illegal drugs: “Throughout my entire career, the thought of cheating never crossed my mind because it was completely contrary to all the values I had accepted. “
Halep won the Grand Slam women’s singles championship twice at the 2018 French Open and 2019 Wimbledon. Her highest ranking in the world was once ranked No. 1 in the world. She said that in her nearly 20-year career, she had participated in hundreds of matches, won two Grand Slam championships, and had 200 blood tests and urine tests, but until August 29, 2022, she The test results were all negative.
The former “world number one” in women’s tennis and two-time Grand Slam champion, 31-year-old Romanian player Simona Halep, was banned for four years for taking banned drugs. The picture shows her hitting the ball in the game. (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
The doping investigation lasted more than a year. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) recently announced the results of its investigation and decided to impose a four-year ban on Halep from October 7, 2022 to October 6, 2026. Halep immediately announced that she would appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and her two former coaches Darren Cahill and Mouratoglou expressed their support for her.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency stated that Halep violated the Tennis Anti-Doping Program (TADP) twice. The first time was during the US Open on August 29, 2022, when she tested positive for the banned drug Roquedusstat. Positive; the second time was when she violated the athlete biological passport program. The biological passport project refers to the longitudinal analysis of the biological indicators of the athletes themselves, without the need to detect the specific banned substances or methods used, to directly determine the athletes’ doping violations. Since Halep has been absent from competition, problems with her athlete’s “biological passport” were discovered in May this year, which led to a separate accusation against her.
During the hearing, Halep stated that she had taken contaminated supplements, which caused the positive urine test. ITIA accepted this argument, but judging from the analysis of the detected concentration, it is impossible for the sample to reach such a high concentration if it was accidentally taken. WTA officials later reiterated: “It is vital for players to understand and comply with the rules of the Tennis Anti-Doping Program.”
The ban will end on October 6, 2026. Considering that she will be 35 years old by then and has been away from the court for another four years, her career is basically over. She also became the biggest tennis star to be banned for taking banned drugs since Russian star Maria Sharapova was banned for 15 months for taking banned substances. Sharapova was suspended for doping in 2016. After that, she tried to return, but her strength was not as good as before, and she retired in 2020.
Pogba found guilty of taking banned drugs
In the first round of the new Serie A season, after Juventus played against Udinese, French midfielder Pogba, who did not play in the game, tested positive for testosterone. This chemical can improve the performance of male athletes and has been banned by many sports.
The 30-year-old French star Paul Pogba, who currently plays for Serie A giant Juventus, tested positive for testosterone in a doping test and was suspended and is awaiting further punishment. (Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)
Currently, Pogba has been suspended. He can apply for the analysis of the drug test results. If the results are still positive, he will face the National Anti-Doping Court. Unless the two parties reach a plea agreement, doping players usually He will be suspended for 2 years, and if he is found to have deliberately taken banned substances, the ban can be extended to 4 years.
According to the Italian media “Gazzetta dello Sport”, Pogba accidentally consumed a “supplement” from the United States, and the doping standards in the United States are different from those in Italy. The “supplement” was recommended to Pogba by his friends, and Juventus’ team doctor had nothing to do with it.
The 30-year-old Pogba serves as a midfielder and made his debut in the Manchester United youth training camp. Last summer, he joined Juventus as a free agent for the second time since Manchester United. Last season, the Frenchman only played 10 times for the “Bianconeri”, with a total of only 161 minutes; at the same time, the “Glass Man” also missed the World Cup in Qatar. This season, he played 2 times as a substitute for Juventus, with only 52 minutes.
The 30-year-old French star Paul Pogba, who currently plays for Serie A giant Juventus, tested positive for testosterone in a doping test and was suspended and is awaiting further punishment. (Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)
At present, Pogba’s worth has dropped from 100 million euros at his peak to 15 million euros. The minimum ban time for taking drugs is two years. If the violation is confirmed, Juventus can terminate the contract with the Frenchman in advance and save 30 million euros.
Before Pogba, the last case involving doping in Serie A was Atalanta player Palomino. He was suspended for four months and missed the World Cup in Qatar on behalf of the Argentina men’s football team.
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