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Iga Swiatek has accepted a one-month suspension PHOTO: CNN
Five-time Grand Slam champion, Iga Swiatek, has accepted a one-month suspension after testing positive for a prohibited substance.
The Pole was ranked world No 1 when she provided a sample containing the angina medication trimetazidine in an out-of-competition test on August 12.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted the player's explanation that contaminated medication was the cause of the positive test, with Swiatek's level of fault was therefore considered to be at the lowest end of the range for 'No Significant Fault or Negligence'.
Polish tennis player Iga ?wi?tek has accepted a one-month suspension under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme.
A ITIA statement read: "The ITIA accepted that the positive test was caused by the contamination of a regulated non-prescription medication (melatonin), manufactured and sold in Poland that the player had been taking for jet lag and sleep issues, and that the violation was therefore not intentional."
When will Swiatek's suspension run from?
The French Open champion suffered a quarter-final exit from the US Open before being provisionally suspended from September 22 until October 4, seeing her sit out of the Korea Open, the China Open and the Wuhan Open.
Her suspension was not made public, with the tournaments missed attributed to personal matters and a change of coach, before she returned to action with appearances at the WTA Finals and Billie Jean King Cup finals in November.
Swiatek must serve an additional eight days to December 4 to make up the month, while she also forfeits her prize money from the Cincinnati Open, the tournament directly following the test and where she reached the semi-finals.
The five-time Grand Slam champion, now ranked second in the world after Aryna Sabalenka leapfrogged her during the Asian Swing, has described the period as “the worst experience of my life.”
Swiatek, who returned to competition at the WTA Finals and Billie Jean King Cup Finals, wrote on Instagram: "I'm finally allowed... so I instantly want to share with you something that became the worst experience of my life. (CNN)
