BENCHED

Women's Tennis Champion Suspended Over Positive Doping Test

Iga Świątek was also forced to forfeit her prize money from the Cincinnati Open.

Tennis star Iga Świątek accepted a one-month suspension after testing positive for a banned substance, the International Tennis Integrity Agency announced Thursday. Świątek, a five-time grand slam winner, tested positive for trimetazidine, however, the ITIA said they found her “level of fault” to be at “the lowest end of the range for ‘No Significant Fault or Negligence.’” Trimetazidine is considered a “metabolic modulator,” and is believed to help with endurance during physical activity. The positive test, according to the agency, was caused unintentionally by a contaminated batch of melatonin manufactured and sold in Poland. Świątek had been taking the over-the-counter sleep aid for jet lag and sleep issues. “It was a blow for me, I was shocked and this whole situation made me very anxious. At first I couldn’t understand how that was even possible and where it came from,” Świątek said in a video posted to social media Thursday. She received a provisional suspension for three weeks, from Sep. 12 to Oct. 4, forcing her to withdraw from three tournaments during that period: the Korea Open, China Open, and Wuhan Open. Świątek was also made to forfeit her prize money from the Cincinnati Open.