Murray’s racquet sponsor Head said it plans to continue to use the 28-year-old Sharapova as a spokesperson despite the five-time Grand Slam winner’s positive test.
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The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has announced that Sharapova is to be provisionally suspended “with effect from 12 March, pending determination of the case”.
The initial signs for Sharapova commercially did not look good, with major sponsors Nike and Porsche distancing themselves from her and watchmaker Tag Heuer cutting ties completely.
World number one Serena Williams said she is supplement-free in the wake of Maria Sharapova’s failed drugs test.
He also said her positive test should serve as a warning to all tennis players.
Thaggard said in a statement: “While we are surprised and disheartened by Maria Sharapova’s recent announcement, we value our relationship with her as a co-owner of Supergoop! and ambassador for our common cause of conquering the epidemic of skin cancer”.
What none of them knows or would even speculate on is what penalty Sharapova might face.
“Clearly within tennis circles they were aware that a lot of the players were using it and they said there must be something to this”, he said.
Despite his racket sponsor’s suggestion Sharapova had not meant to gain a competitive advantage by using the drug, world number two Murray believes that she must be banned for failing the test.
“And after what has happened over the last 48 hours, I am absolutely certain that the ITF will be looking at the programme and working out if there is anything they can do to make that better”. She faces a possible four-year ban from tennis.
“She’s a one-woman marketing machine”, said Nigel Currie, a British-based sponsorship consultant.
“I had to lose my career and never opted to cheat no matter what”, Capriati wrote in a tweet. “It was a huge mistake and she is taking responsibility for it”.
Sharapova’s latest glamour outing was at the Vanity Fair Oscars Party, her model figure in a white mini cocktail dress from Preen and her long legs accessorized by Gianvito Rossi strappy heels.
It said: “Head is proud to stand behind Maria, now and into the future and we intend to extend her contract”.
She claimed she did not know it had been added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances on 1 January.
The sports star said she had been taking melodonium “for the past 10 years” after being given it by “my family doctor” for health reasons, but had known the drug as mildronate. “I think that showed a lot of courage and a lot of heart, and I think she’s always showed courage and heart in everything that she’s done and this is no different”.
Pound said on Wednesday Sharapova only had herself to blame for not realising meldonium, which some researchers have linked to increased athletic performance and endurance, had been outlawed since January 1. “It seems like it’s nearly a weekly occurrence, so I wouldn’t say it was shocking, really”.
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Several athletes has tested positive for it in 2016, including 1500m world champion Abeba Aregawi, 2015 Tokyo Marathon victor Endeshaw Negesse and Russian ice dancer Ekaterina Bobrova.
