By Gayatri Manu
UPDATE
Maria Sharapova’s doping ban has been reduced from 2 years to 15 months, after she appealed to the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) in June this year, wanting to either overturn, or reduce the ban imposed on her. Even as the CAS declared that a 15-month ban was appropriate, the Telegraph has quoted Sharapova’s lawyer, John Haggerty, as saying at a press conference that the CAS decision has exposed the “ITF [International Tennis Federation] decision for what it is: pure fiction.” According to the report, they are also looking into suing the ITF. Since Sharapova can resume playing in 2017, she’s going to be able to play at Roland Garros. She said in a statement on Facebook, “In so many ways, I feel like something I love was taken away from me and it will feel really good to have it back.”
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9th June, 2016
Five-time Grand Slam winner Maria Sharapova has been banned from playing tennis for two years for taking the cardiac drug Mildronate.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) says that the ban is deemed to have commenced on 26th January ; the day she lost to Serena Williams in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
Many athletes, including the Russian figure skater Ekaterina Bobrova, have been suspended for using the drug. Sharapova claims she’s been taking the drug for the past 10 years under instructions from her doctor, Antoly Skalny, to treat a magnesium deficiency because of a family history of diabetes. Mildronate is not approved in the EU or USA for this treatment.
The 69 year old Latvian chemist, Ivar Klanis, who invented the drug, claims that it was first supplied to Soviet soldiers during the Cold War to increase their blood flow and oxygen intake capacity so that they could carry heavy backpacks over mountains and desert plains.
So how does this drug, which sounds like the creation of a Marvel super-villain, make its way to the body of the second richest athlete in the history of women’s sport?
The drug is sold over the counter to treat Ischaemia – a lack of blood flow to various parts of the body. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) found ‘evidence of its use by athletes with the intention of increasing performance.’ It was then banned on 16th September 2015, when it was found that 2.2 percent of athletes tested positive for the stuff.
There is no precedent of tennis players having served such a long suspension for being tested positive in this test. In a statement made on her Facebook page, Sharapova claims that the sentence is ‘unfairly harsh.’
We felt the same way along with a thousand other heartbroken fans, until we heard that Sharapova had begun taking the drugs way back in 2005, when Skalny prescribed, “a detailed medicinal and nutritional regime, which at the outset, comprised about 18 medications and supplements” to boost her immune system. Having recommended she take two Mildronate pills “1 hr before competition”, Skalny continued: “During games of special importance you can increase your Mildronate dose to 3-4 pills (1 hr before the match).”
She left the doctor in 2013 after this cocktail of medicines left her feeling overwhelmed but, “ At Wimbledon 2015 she had used Mildronate six times in the past seven days, and at the Australian Open five times in the past seven days,” claims the report published by the ITF.
In its verdict, the ITF recognized Sharapova had not intentionally broken anti-doping rules, since she did not know that Mildronate contained meldonium, banned from January this year. The tribunal has found a “consistent pattern of evasion” around the athlete for not revealing her usage of the drug.
Sharapova has not been playing since the ban commenced in January, but has been in the news for her high-profile appearances at the MET Gala, and for endorsing her new brand of chocolates ‘Sugarpova.’ Tag Heuer and Porsche have cut off their endorsement deals with the tennis superstar post the doping scandal. However, big brands such as Nike, and racket manufacturer Head, have remained faithful, a decision criticised by tennis legend Andy Murray.
A statement released by Nike revealed that they have decided to continue with their 8 year, $70 million endorsement deal with Sharapova. “The ITF Tribunal has found that Maria did not intentionally break its rules. Maria has always made her position clear, has apologized for her mistake and is now appealing the length of the ban. Based on the decision of the ITF and their factual findings, we hope to see Maria back on court and will continue to partner with her,” they said.
Sharapova was the flag-bearer of the Russian team at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in London, 2012. Tarpischev, the president of the Tennis Federation Russia, believes that she still has an opportunity to represent the country in the Women’s Singles event at the Rio Olympics, 2016.