Former world number one Simona Halep will challenge her four-year ban for sports doping at the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Wednesday.
The CAS indicated Tuesday that Halep plans to participate in a hearing to contest the sanction imposed on him. This should take place behind closed doors and last three days.
The court mentioned in a press release that “no indication can be given as to the date on which the final arbitral award will be announced to the parties”.
Halep, holder of two Grand Slam titles, hopes to overturn the sanction imposed by the International Tennis Integrity Agency last September. For now, it is due to expire in October 2026, when the Romanian will be 35 years old.
Halep tested positive for Roxadustat during the 2022 U.S. Open, prompting a much more extensive investigation after investigators found irregularities in his biological passport. The latter is used to detect unusual blood data that is measured over several years.
Roxadustat, according to the European Medicines Agency, “is an HIF prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor that increases endogenous production of erythropoietin, or EPO, and stimulates the production of hemoglobin and red blood cells.” This drug has long been used as a performance enhancing drug by cyclists and long-distance runners.
Halep has always denied doping and attributed the result to the ingestion of contaminated dietary supplements.
“At the request of the parties, no further information will be provided in order to respect the identity of the participants,” noted the court, referring to the expert witnesses who will participate in the process.
Halep notably hired an American lawyer, Howard Jacobs, who often represents star athletes accused of doping, and the three CAS judges who will sit on this case are among the most renowned.
Halep became world number one in the WTA rankings in 2017. She won Wimbledon in 2019, defeating 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in the final after triumphing at the French Open a year earlier. .