The International Tennis Integrity Agency has defended the management of Jannik Sinner’s doping case.
The world No. 1 was found to have “bore no fault or negligence” after twice testing positive for the banned substance clostebol in March. He received provisional suspensions for both offences but quickly appealed them both, with three experts finding his contamination explanation plausible.
A hearing was held on August 15 and, five days later, an independent tribunal ruled that the Italian had “no fault or negligence”. News of his positive tests only broke when the panel’s ruling was announced.
Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are among those who have called out the “inconsistencies” in his case, as news of the tests was not announced until after his independent tribunal took place last month. Federer said: “I understand the frustration of, ‘Has he been treated the same as others?’ And I think this is where it comes down to.”
Djokovic also raised concerns, saying: “I understand the frustration of the players is there because of lack of consistency.” Several players have also questioned why Sinner could keep competing while others have served provisional suspensions while waiting for their hearings.
The British chief of the ITIA, Karen Moorehouse, has now responded to the controversy. “In this case, given the facts and that the [scientific] experts we instructed were in agreement with the explanation provided by the player, it was perhaps less complex, which means we were able to run the full process over four or five months,” she told The Times, noting that his status “absolutely” did not spark any exceptions.
