Andrea Petkovic applauded Iga Swiatek for the way she handled the doping situation as the 2014 French Open semifinalist fully believes that the Pole was going through a very rough time because she knew she was innocent.
Shortly after the ITIA announced last Thursday that the world No. 2 tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ) and had served a provisional suspension before accepting a one-month ban, the 23-year-old wanted to personally explain what happened and she did so by uploading a video message on her Instagram.
In August, Swiatek provided a sample that came back as positive for a banned substance and she was informed about it on September 12th. Then, came what she described as an extremely stressful and anxious period, during which she cried a lot and couldn’t sleep all while trying to determine how a positive test happened and prove her innocence. Eventually, they found out that non-prescription melatonin pills manufactured in Poland were contaminated and the ITIA accepted that she didn’t intentionally take a prohibited substance.
In the same message, Swiatek expressed gratitude to everyone who helped her prove her innocence but also noted it was a traumatic experience that she would never forget.
Petkovic, a former world No. 9, watched the video and had no doubt that everything said there was pure and sincere.
“I think Iga Swiatek handled it the best of all players with her videos, speaking right down the barrel, in her language where she feels most comfortable with the translation of course and subtitles. I was really moved by because you could see the stress, the distress, the relief that it’s over and just explaining right down the barrel as if she was looking into your eyes, I thought that was really powerful from her and I have to say she really gained by respect and appreciation about what she did there. I think that’s really hard,” the former German tennis star said on the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast.
What Swiatek exactly said?
In the very first sentence of her message, the five-time Grand Slam underlined that she was about to address “a tough topic” and one she wasn’t allowed to speak of for two and a half months. Then, she mentioned TMZ and how she was left absolutely shocked about the positive doping test since she didn’t even know what TMZ was.
Iga Swiatek© Iga Swiatek/Instagram – Fair Use
“So I had a strong sense of injustice, and these first few weeks were really chaotic. We instantly reacted and cooperated with the ITIA. The detected concentration was extremely low, suggested, or rather, made it obvious that either the sample was contaminated or a supplement or medication that I was taking was contaminated, which is why we focused on running tests on all nutritional supplements and medications that I was taking,” Swiatek added.
Then, the 23-year-old went on to explain how they determined that the melatonin medication she was using was to blame. She explained that she needed melatonin pills to “treat stress and jet lag issues.”
“The whole thing will definitely stay with me for the rest of my life. It took a lot of strength, returning to training after this situation nearly broke my heart. There were many tears and lots of sleepless nights. The worst part of it was uncertainty. I didn’t know what was going to happen with my career, how things would end or if I would be allowed to play tennis at all,” the former No. 1 said next.
At the end of her message, Swiatek also acknowledged she was aware that some may change their perception of her. And she pleaded that not to happen because she believed she was 100 percent innocent.
“I have a sense this situation could undermine the image I’ve been building for years. Which is why I hope you will understand what happened, understand how I had no control over it, and could do nothing to prevent this unfortunate turn of events. I hope you will stand by me and will keep supporting me, because I’m not sure if, without my supporters, I would have been able to find the strength to carry on and keep fighting. So now, I have fought the toughest battle of my life, and I hope you will stay with me and keep supporting me,” the Polish tennis star noted.
In general, the majority have accepted Swiatek’s explanation and think that it should all end there. However, some questioned it – most notably Nick Kyrgios – who sarcastically suggested that all it took for a top player to avoid doping suspension is to say that they “did not know.”
On Wednesday, Swiatek’s one-month suspension expired and she will be aligible to start her 2025 season in time.
Tennis World USA