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Simona Halep's doping ban was recently reduced after she won her appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The tennis world, including legends Boris Becker, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova and her former coach Darren Cahill, reacted to the decision with joy.
Halep tested positive for roxadustat at the 2022 US Open. In May 2023, she faced a second charge from the ITIA, citing irregularities in her athlete biological passport.
In September 2023, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) officially announced that she will be suspended for four years due to two separate violations of anti-doping rules.
The two-time Grand Slam champion expressed dissatisfaction with the decision and decided to appeal the ban at the CAS. On Tuesday (March 5), the CAS reduced her sentence to nine months.
The panel ruled that Simona Halep's anti-doping rule violations were not intentional. It added that she bore some level of fault or negligence for not exercising sufficient care when using the Keto MCT supplement, but that this was not significant.
Following the announcement on Tuesday, 18-time Grand Slam champion Chris Evert took to X (formerly Twitter) to express her belief in the 32-year-old's innocence.
“Happy for her! Always believed in her innocence!,” Evert tweeted.
German legend Boris Becker expressed happiness about the ruling of the Court of Arbitration for Sport, stating that it was well-deserved.
“Yesssss Simo!!! Well deserved,” Becker wrote.
Halep's former coach Darren Cahill also expressed happiness about the decision. He tweeted, "Good morning" along with a blushing face, a red heart emoji, and the hashtag "simo.”
“Good morning #simo,” Cahill tweeted.
Cahill coached the Romanian from 2016 to 2018, helping her finish two seasons as World No.1 on the WTA rankings. He also guided her to three Grand Slam finals and her first Grand Slam title at the 2018 French Open.
Former World No.1 Martina Navratilova also applauded the CAS' decision by sharing a tweet announcing the reduction of Halep's ban with three clapping hands emojis.
Simona Halep eager to return to the WTA tour after ban reduction
Simona Halep has expressed her eagerness to return to the tennis court following her lengthy absence due to her doping ban. The Romanian can notably return to the sport with immediate effect, having already served her provisional suspension since October 2022.
While speaking to the BBC about the ruling, the 32-year-old stated that she had her faith in the process despite the allegations levied against her and the setbacks she faced. She added that she is eager to return to the tour.
"My faith in the process was tested by the scandalous accusations that were levelled against me, and by the seemingly unlimited resources that were aligned against me. I cannot wait to return to the tour," Halep said.
