Halep faces additional anti-doping charge related to biological passport and complains about “harassment”

Already provisionally suspended for a break of anti-doping protocols, Simona Halep now faces charges related to irregularities in her biological passport.

Simona Halep, Wimbledon 2022 | © AI / Reuters / Panoramic

Chris Oddo

May 19, 2023

Provisionally suspended for a doping violation in October, things appear to be getting more complicated for two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep.

On Friday, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) added that Romanian Halep has been charged with a further and separate breach of the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP), relating to irregularities in her Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) (read the full statement here).

The Romanian answered in no more than 90 minutes to this statement, commenting about the situation on social media with these words : “I feel helpless facing such harassment and a motivation on their behalf to prove me guilty of something I never did”.

In a retweet of this statement, her coach Patrick Mouratoglou (co-founder of Tennis Majors) kept the word “harassment” and added : “This situation is going way past the limits of the acceptable.”

Since October 7, when I got charged by the ITIA for a suspicion of doping, I have lived the worst nightmare I have ever gone through in my life.
— Simona Halep

“Since October 7, when I got charged by the ITIA for a suspicion of doping, I have lived the worst nightmare I have ever gone through in my life” Halep wrote. “Not only has my name been soiled in the worst possible way, but I am facing a constant determination from the ITIA for a reason that I cannot understand, to prove my guilt while I haven’t EVER even thought of taking any illicit substance.”

pic.twitter.com/kg8OzR3Ha2
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) May 19, 2023

“Engaging with Ms. Halep in an empathetic, efficient, and timely manner”

According to the ITIA, the additional charge of an “Adverse Passport Finding” was based on an assessment of Halep’s biological passport by an independent panel. The ITIA claims that the subsequent charge is “separate and in addition to the existing Roxadustat charge from August 2022”.

“We understand that today’s announcement adds complexity to an already high-profile situation,” Nicole Sapstead, Senior Director for Anti-Doping at the ITIA said in a statement. “From the outset of this process – and indeed any other at the ITIA – we have remained committed to engaging with Ms. Halep in an empathetic, efficient, and timely manner.

“We do, of course, appreciate there is a great deal of media interest in these cases. It would be inappropriate for us to comment on specifics until the conclusion of the process, but we will continue to engage with the Sport Resolutions independent tribunal and Ms. Halep’s representatives as expeditiously as possible.”

Halep, who has been provisionally suspended as a result of testing positive for the banned substance Roxadustat at the US Open in August of last year, spoke to Tennis Majors in April about delays in the hearing of her case.

Halep : “I have not taken any banned substance”

Halep stated that experts she had mandated in the field have determined that her positive test came as a result of “contamination”. “Knowingly, I have not taken any banned substance. I am a big supporter of clean sports and have always been against doping,” she reiterated.

During our interview, Halep maintained that the positive test was the result of a contamination.

“After a lot of work, they found out that there was a contamination, a supplement contamination, and that’s why the quantity was so so low in my body,” she said. “A contamination is when someone takes an authorised supplement, but the company who sells it makes a mistake, and there’s a very low quantity of substance that should not be in there.”