International Tennis Integrity Agency stands by controversial rulings surrounding Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek

Several fans questioned the transparency of the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) following the punishment handed out to Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek after it was discovered the duo had tested positive for prohibited substances. However, the governing body has refused to back down on their decision.

Sinner tested positive for clostebol at last year's Indian Wells event, leading to an eventual three-month suspension. On the other hand, Swiatek received a one-month ban for violating the doping policy, as she tested positive for trimetazidine after last year's US Open.

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ITIA stands by their ruling

Although several fans believe the ITIA was supposed to announce positive tests at the time of their discovery, ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse stated the agency's policy was to not to announce tests. but inform the public of any doping-related suspensions.

"It was mistakenly believed that we were announcing positive tests, when, in reality, we were announcing provisional suspensions," said Moorhouse. In both the case of Sinner - and in that of Swiatek - the rules were respected. The players filed an appeal against the provisional suspension within the 10-day period provided for by our regulations and, since the appeal was successful, the provisional suspensions were not made public.
"Some sports, such as athletics, decide to immediately announce provisional suspensions. Others, especially team sports, never announce them. Tennis, for now, has given itself the ten-day rule, we'll see, in the future this rule could also change."

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