The world number one tennis player tested positive twice in March. Sinner got off lightly. His coach absolved him of all blame.
Tennis coach Darren Cahill has defended his protégé Jannik Sinner after two positive doping tests were announced and ruled out any intent. “He would never do anything intentionally. He was in an unfortunate situation,” Cahill said in an interview with US broadcaster ESPN. “The truth is out, no mistake or negligence, and hopefully he can put this behind him.”
World number one Sinner tested positive twice for the banned anabolic steroid clostebol in March. Nevertheless, the 23-year-old has avoided a two-year doping ban because, according to the responsible tennis agency Itia, the Italian was acquitted by an independent court last Thursday. According to Itia, scientific experts found Sinner’s explanation to be credible, namely that this year’s Australian Open champion did not intentionally use the banned substance.
Sinner had explained in a statement that the substance entered his body via the hands of his physiotherapist. According to the statement, the carer used a spray containing clostebol, which is available over the counter in Italy, to treat a cut on his finger. According to Itia, the physiotherapist in question used the spray between March 5 and 13, which led to the unwitting contamination.
The positive samples were taken on March 10 at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells, where Sinner reached the semifinals, and eight days later out of competition. According to Itia, Sinner was then provisionally suspended in each case, but successfully appealed against the suspension and was able to continue playing. “The reason he was able to continue playing after the short provisional suspension is because they were able to pinpoint exactly where the incident occurred and they were able to explain what happened with the spray,” Cahill said.
Stress after positive tests leads to Olympic exit
According to Cahill, the incident left Sinner “physically and mentally exhausted, he got tonsillitis and missed the Olympics,” said the 58-year-old Canadian. “We’re not looking for heartache. We’re just grateful there’s no suspension.”
Source: Stern
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