Months after Simona Halep failed an anti-doping test at the 2022 US Open, the ITIA (International Tennis Integrity Agency) comes forward with a new allegation against the former WTA leader. We are talking about “violations” in the biological passport.

>> Simona Halep’s stormy reaction after ITIA’s accusations of a new violation of the anti-doping program

• The program for athletes’ biological passports collects and compares data (periodic blood tests) to detect discrepancies over time that may suggest possible doping, writes the BBC.

Simona Halep case: ITIA says there’s a violation, ANAD says it’s fine

The biological passport was introduced to tennis in 2014 and is used by anti-doping bodies to monitor variables in an athlete’s blood over time.

To be more specific, we are dealing with the values ​​measured in the athlete’s blood, and if these indicators go beyond the norm, then we come to “inconsistencies in the biological passport.”

This is the first signal that the athlete may have resorted to banned substances.

It is interesting that ITIA talks about these “violations” in Simona Halep’s biological passport, but ANAD (National Anti-Doping Agency) said a few months ago (not in October 2022) that there are no problems in this sense.

“This was not the case of Simona” (nor of the violations in the biological passport), Gabriela Andreasu, director of ANAD, told gsp.ro at the time.

What is a biological passport?

According to the official website of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) monitors certain “biological parameters” that indirectly detect the effects of doping.

“The fundamental principle of the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) is to monitor certain biological variables that indirectly reveal the effects of doping, instead of trying to detect the substance or method of doping itself,” WADA said, according to News.ro. .

Anti-doping organizations can integrate the biological passport into the broader framework of a strong anti-doping program to:

• to identify athletes who need additional attention through intelligent and timely interpretation of passport data. ABP provides valuable information that can be used to more effectively manage anti-doping activities such as targeted testing or investigations

• to prosecute possible Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) under Article 2.2 (Use or Attempted Use by an Athlete of a Prohibited Substance or Prohibited Method) of the World Anti-Doping Code (Code).

Simona Halep’s hearing in the doping case is possible on May 28

In the above interview with Tennis Majors, Simona said at one point that she has a hearing scheduled for May 28, but the ITF, which has already rejected her testimony and request to lift the suspension, may request that the hearing be canceled. It remains to be seen what will happen at that point.

The ITIA sets out the steps that are usually followed in the following doping cases: testing / samples sent to the laboratory / analysis report / analysis of the results / contact with the player / provisional suspension / accusation of the athlete / player response / player fully admits / player admits only in part / decision and sanction / player rejects / court / court decision and sanction / appeal.

• The news that Simona Halep was temporarily suspended for doping appeared on Friday, October 21, 2022.

Know:

• Simona Halep is temporarily suspended from tennis due to a positive test for Roxadustat (conducted during the US Open 2022).

• Simona’s case will be heard by Sport Resolutions, an independent court in London that hears doping cases in white sport.

• However, if innocence cannot be proven, Simone has one more appeal: the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne.

• It will be recalled that the maximum suspension that Halep could receive is 4 years.