Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova fails doping test

In a shocking development, Russian tennis star and style icon Maria Sharapova admitted to failing a drugs test at this year’s Australian Open.

The 28-year-old, currently ranked seventh in the world, tested positive for Meldonium, a heart attack drug that was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) banned list on January 1, 2016.

Sharapova claimed not to have read the list of recently banned substances.

“I made a huge mistake and I let my fans down. I failed the test and take full responsibility for that. I had been taking this medicine for the last 10 years, but on January 1 this became a prohibited substance and I didn’t know. I let the sport down,” said Sharapova.

The tall Russian is familiar to Qatari tennis fans as she has played at the Qatar Open WTA event on several occasions, winning the title in 2005 and 2008.

Sharapova said she was prescribed the medication for health issues dating back to 2006, including magnesium deficiency, an irregular heartbeat, and a family history of diabetes.

“It’s very important for you to understand that for 10 years, this medicine wasn’t on WADA’s ban list, and I had been legally taking the medicine for that period,” she said.

“Throughout my long career, I’ve been very open and honest about many things, and I take great responsibility and professionalism in my job every single day, and I made a huge mistake,” she added.

Sharapova has not competed since she lost to American rival Serena Williams in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne in January. She tested positive following that defeat on January 26.

An International Tennis Federation statement said that Sharapova will be provisionally suspended with effect from March 12, pending determination of the case.

Courtesy: insidethegames.biz