Five-time tennis major champion Iga Swiatek expressed relief and “closure” following the announcement that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will not appeal the decision in her doping case. Swiatek, who is currently competing at the Australian Open, had tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ), a banned heart drug, and accepted a one-month ban in late 2024.
The 23-year-old Pole withdrew from the WTA’s Asian swing in September-October, citing “personal matters.” Later, it was revealed that the reason for her absence was related to the doping violation. Swiatek has consistently denied knowingly doping, explaining that the positive test resulted from contaminated non-prescription medication she had used to aid her sleep.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted her explanation, and WADA’s review concluded that the scenario of contamination via melatonin was plausible. As a result, WADA decided against appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), allowing Swiatek to move forward from the matter.
Speaking after reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals, Swiatek shared her sense of relief: “I’m just satisfied that I can get a closure, kind of, and I can just move on and finish this whole process,” she said. “Now for sure, I just want to put this behind me because I have already been on tour for quite a few weeks, and it’s all been good.”
In a related development, WADA has appealed a ruling in the case of men’s world number one Jannik Sinner, who tested positive for clostebol, a banned steroid, after his physio accidentally used a spray containing the substance. Despite the ITIA clearing him, WADA is pushing for a hearing at CAS in April, seeking a potential ban for the Italian player.
