On Thursday, it was revealed that defending French Open champion and World No.2 Iga Swiatek is also a dope cheat, causing significant damage to the global tennis image. She is suspended until December 2, 2024, after testing positive for Trimetazidine, a banned performance-enhancing substance. Following Jannik Sinner, she is the second high-profile tennis player to test positive this year. Meanwhile, Sinner, now the No. 1 rated man, was cleared.
Swiatek, who dropped from No. 1 to No. 2 last month. Now she accepted a one-month suspension. She recently won the Billie Jean King Cup for Poland. She won her first trophy of the year by defeating Elena Rybakina in the WTA 1000 tournament final. The Polish earned her second championship of 2024 at the WTA 1000 Indian Wells Open, beating Maria Sakkari in the final. Swiatek dominated the clay court swing by winning 19 matches.
The streak included titles at WTA 1000 events in Madrid and Rome. Iga Swiatek’s urine included trace quantities of trimetazidine, a banned cardiac drug also known as TMZ, during an out-of-competition test on August 12, 10 days after her final match at the Summer Games and just before the start of the Cincinnati Open. On September 12, eight days after losing to Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinals of the United States Open.
Swiatek undermining tennis’s moral fabric
Iga Swiatek was informed that she had been provisionally suspended. The TMZ was found to have contaminated a sleep aid, melatonin, that Swiatek’s psychologist purchased for her at a drugstore in Poland, where it is advertised as medicine. Swiatek mentioned 14 drugs or supplements on the ITIA report but did not include melatonin. It is a metabolic agent that can help prevent angina attacks if used as an “add-on treatment.”
Swiatek was issued a provisional ban in September, following the U.S. Open, but it was lifted after she swiftly provided a credible explanation for the contamination, supported by tests, according to the ITIA. She missed three tournaments during the Asian swing following the US Open, although she did not explain why.
