World No 2 Iga Swiatek handed one-month ban after testing positive for prohibited substance
World No 2 Iga Swiatek has been banned from tennis for one month after testing positive for a banned substance.
Swiatek tested for trimetazidine (TMZ), which enhances blood flow, in an out-of-competition sample ahead of the Cincinnati Open in August.
The 23-year-old was informed of the positive result by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) on 12 September, and received a mandatory provisional suspension.
On Thursday the ITIA issued a one-month ban, concluding after an investigation that Swiatek bore “no significant fault or negligence” and did not intentionally take trimetazidine.
In her defence, Swiatek submitted hair samples along with all of her regular supplements to two independent laboratories for testing, where it was found that a melatonin supplement to manage jetlag was the cause of the TMZ traces. An independent Wada-accredited lab commissioned by the ITIA further confirmed the results.
In a video statement, Swiatek said: “I was shocked and this whole situation made me very anxious. At first I couldn’t understand how that was even possible and where it came from.
“[Trimetazidine is] a substance I’ve never heard about before. I don’t think I even knew it existed. I have never encountered it, nor did people around me, so I had a strong sense of injustice. Either the sample was contaminated, or a supplement or medication that I was taking was contaminated.”
Swiatek added: “This experience, the most difficult in my life so far, taught me a lot. The whole thing will definitely stay with me for the rest of my life, it took a lot of strength, returning to training after this situation nearly broke my heart. So there were many tears and lot’s of sleepless nights.”
