Iga Swiatek declared herself “satisfied” on Monday by the decision of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) not to appeal her one-month suspension following a positive test for a banned substance in August 2024.
“I’m just happy to reach some form of conclusion” and to be able to “move on,” said the 23-year-old Polish player at a press conference, after qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Open from Australia.
The world No. 2 also said she “didn’t notice a difference” in treatment from the Melbourne crowd. “I’m happy that people understand,” she said.
Her impression is the same regarding the attitude of the other players. “In the locker room,” she said, “the girls were also understanding.”
The five-time Grand Slam winner said that “anyone who reads the documents and knows the details of [son] case, will understand. »
Four times titled at Roland-Garros, Swiatek now wants to put this affair behind her and focus on her journey at the Australian Open, which she has never won.
-“I just want to play tennis and focus on the tournament, so it’s a good thing the process is over,” she said.
After having dispatched her first four matches without leaving the slightest set on the way, Swiatek will face the American Emma Navarro (8e) for a place in the semi-finals.
Testing positive out of competition for trimetazidine (TMZ), a heart medication, last August, the Pole, then world number 1, received – and accepted – a one-month suspension which deprived her of the tour in Asia. The affair did not come to light until three months later.
WADA’s scientific experts considered that the reason given by the Polish player, drug contamination, was “plausible” and “that there would be no scientific grounds to challenge it before the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) “.
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