Former No. 1 tennis player Simona Halep gets 4-year ban in doping case

Simona Halep suspended 4 years for doping violations; ITIA found she committed intentional anti-doping rule violations and irregularities in her Athlete Biological Passport

Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep has been suspended from professional tennis for four years for doping violations, the International Tennis Integrity Agency said Tuesday.

The 31-year-old Romanian had been accused of two doping offenses — failing a drug test during the 2022 U.S. Open and for irregularities in her Athlete Biological Passport, the ITIA said.

A panel concluded that Halep “had committed intentional anti-doping rule violations.”

Halep had been provisionally suspended since October 2022. The four-year ban will run to Oct. 6, 2026.

Halep reached No. 1 in the WTA rankings in 2017. She won Wimbledon in 2019, beating 23-time major champion Serena Williams in the final, a year after winning the French Open.

Halep, who had blamed a contaminated supplement, plans to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

“I am continuing to train and do everything in my power to clear my name of these false allegations and return to the court,” Halep said in a statement.