Halep’s doping ban is fall from grace but ruling bodies can make process fairer

Simona Halep holds the Venus Rosewater dish after defeating Serena Williams in the Wimbledon women’s singles final in 2019. Photograph: Ben Curtis/AP

For Simona Halep, former world No 1, the outcome of her doping tribunal could not have been much worse. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has found the player guilty of two intentional breaches of anti-doping rules and handed her a four-year ban from competition. At age 31, it could be a career-ending sentence.

The Romanian tested positive for the prohibited substance roxadustat at last year’s US Open (the substance enhances the production of red blood cells, which could benefit endurance). Over a hearing that lasted two days, the ITIA found “substantial” evidence of doping violations as well as long-term irregularities in the player’s biological passport (a monitor of a competitor’s blood indicators) following analysis of 51 samples.