A teenage tennis player from Russia has been banned from playing competitive tennis for nine months after testing positive for a performance enhancing drug. The 14-year-old, who has not been named because of their age, tested positive for meldonium during a random anti-doping test.
The teenager was playing in only their second senior tournament in January when they were selected for the random test resulting in a positive result. Meldonium is a banned substance created to increase the capacity of the body to carry oxygen.
The Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP) said that the length of the ban was determined by the player's young age, level and lack of access to anti-doping education.
