Titled Italian Jannik Sinner became a participant in the most notorious doping scandal in tennis in recent times. But the first racket of the world managed to get out of the water unscathed. Even the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) did not contact the fraudster.

Forgiven doping

This year, Sinner has made incredible progress: he rose to first place in the ATP rankings, won his first Grand Slam tournament, and became the best in Australia. Sinner also managed to reach the semifinals at Roland Garros.

In this light, the appearance of the August news about the discovery of the banned drug Clostebol in two doping tests of an athlete suggested certain thoughts. However, the Italian team managed to prove his innocence in proceedings with the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). After that, the athlete calmly went to the USA, where only the lazy do not kick athletes from Russia or China caught doping, and won to the enthusiastic applause of the crowd at the US Open.

The Italian’s defense convinced investigators that the substance entered his body through contact with the hands of physiotherapist Giacomo Naldi during a massage. The specialist allegedly used a medicine containing clostebol to treat his wound. As a result, the specialist was fired and is now unlikely to find work in professional sports.

However, it was too early for Yannick to relax, since the possibility of disqualification remained. WADA had 21 days to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). On September 10, the Italian publication Corriere della Sera reported that anti-doping officials did not do this. Thus, the Italian is no longer in danger.

Jannik Sinner / Photo: © Graham Denholm / Stringer / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

“I know my truth”

The decision in the Sinner case looks surprising against the background of the situation with Russian biathletes Evgeny Ustyugov and Svetlana Sleptsova, who were stripped of their Olympic medals by CAS the day before after a long-term confrontation with WADA. An investigation into an alleged violation of anti-doping rules was initiated back in 2018.

Our athletes were not going to give up and filed an appeal to defend their fair name, but it didn’t help either. This is understandable: ridiculous excuses about the massage therapist’s wounds, brother’s sheets and sex only work from athletes with the correct passport.

– Probably not surprised. Six years have already passed, this story is beginning to be forgotten, because everything has been dragging on for so long. If you hadn’t reminded me, I wouldn’t have remembered. Certainly. I know my truth. I would like to achieve justice, but I don’t know whether it will be possible to do this in the current conditions,” commented Sleptsova’s decision on Match TV.

Now our biathletes in the West can legitimately be called violators, but a massage lover with steroids will calmly perform at prestigious tennis tournaments, and will be applauded by stands around the world.