The five-time Grand Slam-winner, who faces a ban of up to four years, says she has been taking the drug, which was added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned list on 1 January, for health reasons for the past 10 years. Its subject line was “Main Changes to the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme for 2016”.
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Maria Sharapova has hit out at reports suggesting she was warned five times about meldonium before testing positive to the drug.
“I won’t pretend to be injured so I can hide the truth about my testing”, said Sharapova, vowing to set the record straight over her supposed multiple warnings.
“I feel for her with all that’s happening and I just hope she gets out of this stronger”, the world number one said. “No excuses, but it’s wrong to say I was warned five times”.
“If you’re taking a prescription drug and you’re not using it for what that drug was meant for, then you don’t need it, so you’re just using it for the performance enhancing benefits of that drug is giving you”.
In comments reported by the BBC, the 14-time grand slam champion said: ” I am a completely clean guy.
“I am studying medicine but I have never heard of it”.
Andy Murray believes the International Tennis Federation (ITF) is not doing enough to fight doping in tennis after only being tested twice in 2016. But the other “communications” ?
The ITF ruling on the length of Sharapova’s ban will be revealed today, but her clarification further emphasizes the many questions that have been raised regarding her personal team and management and what is a major oversight on their behalf, if Sharapova’s claims are true.
Sharapova said she received another email on 18 December, entitled “Player News” , inside which was a warning buried deep down.
“It’s not up to me to decide the punishment, but if you’re taking performance enhancing drugs and you fail a drugs test, you have to get suspended”, stated Murray, as he spoke to the media at the Indian Wells Masters event.
Several media sources, alleged medical professionals and a number of Sharapova’s own contemporaries have cast aspersions on her claims of struggling with heart problems, which is what meldonium is primarily prescribed for. The manufacturers recommend a four- to six-week course of treatment, two to three times per year, with only a doctor able to recommend a longer course of treatment.
It “is common ground within the scientific community” that for meldonium to provide “any relevant performance enhancing effect it has to be taken in daily dosages in excess of 1,000 to 2,000 mg”, Eliasch said.
“It is disappointing for all the players involved but it doesn’t reflect on the game”, Williams said. I have been honest and up front. And Sharapova said she had refused to fake an injury just to keep the news quiet.
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Eliasch said his brand, which started sponsoring Sharapova in 2011, “is proud to stand behind Maria, now and into the future and we intend to extend her contract”.
