Simona Halep, Former Tennis No. 1, Suspended for Doping Violation

Former tennis world No. 1 Simona Halep has been provisionally suspended after failing a drug test during the U.S. Open last month, the International Tennis Integrity Agency announced Friday. 

Halep, a two-time Grand Slam champion and the current No. 9 player in the WTA rankings, tested positive for the banned substance Roxadustat, according to the ITIA. Roxadustat is a drug approved for medical use in the European Union to treat the symptoms of anemia caused by chronic kidney failure, according to the Associated Press.

Halep took to Twitter shortly after the announcement, saying that the positive test result “came as the biggest shock of my life.” She said that she would now begin “the hardest match of my life: a fight for the truth.”

“Throughout my whole career, the idea of cheating never even crossed my mind once, as it is totally against all the values I have been educated with,” Halep wrote. “Facing such an unfair situation, I feel completely confused and betrayed. 

“I will fight until the end to prove that I never knowingly took a prohibited substance and I have faith that sooner or later, the truth will come out.”

The 31-year-old Romanian had announced just last month that she would not play for the remainder of the season after undergoing nose surgery to improve her breathing after she felt “completely exhausted” following her first-round match at the U.S. Open. Entering the year’s final Grand Slam as the No. 7 seed, Halep lost to Ukraine’s Daria Snigur 6–2, 0–6, 6–4 on Aug. 30.

During her suspension, Halep will be unable to compete in any sanctioned events. She will have an opportunity to appeal the ruling, but currently faces a ban of up to four years.