Simona Halep Cleared for Immediate Tennis Return After Doping Ban Reduction
Former tennis world No. 1 Simona Halep has had her backdated four-year doping ban reduced to nine months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), allowing her to return to the sport. The ban was initially imposed in September 2023 after she tested positive for the banned substance Roxadustat at the 2022 US Open. The CAS Panel determined that her anti-doping rule violations were not intentional, attributing the positive test to the consumption of a contaminated supplement. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) had also charged her with irregularities in her Athlete Biological Passport, but CAS dismissed that charge. Halep expressed relief at the decision, stating that she has always been a clean athlete and that the truth has prevailed.