{"id":3856,"date":"2017-08-07T14:13:13","date_gmt":"2017-08-07T18:13:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/?p=3856"},"modified":"2021-12-23T20:31:08","modified_gmt":"2021-12-24T01:31:08","slug":"sara-errani-handed-two-month-doping-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2017\/08\/07\/sara-errani-handed-two-month-doping-ban\/","title":{"rendered":"Sara Errani Handed Two Month Doping Ban–The Punishment Seems Far Worse than the Crime"},"content":{"rendered":"

The International Tennis Federation has announced that former French Open finalist Sara Errani will be banned for two months after testing positive for letrozole<\/a>. The substance, prohibited under the WADA anti-doping program, was present in “Femara,” a medicine Errani\u2019s mother has been taking daily for five years following surgery for breast cancer. Whilst the case is not as high-profile as Sharapova\u2019s ban for meldonium, nor the punishment as severe, its relation with the wider sports doping narrative is particularly interesting.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The ITF first found the former World #5 guilty of wrongdoings in February when she tested positive for letrozole in an out-of-competition test. By preventing the conversion of androgens such as endogenous testosterone into estrogen, letrozole is believed to help increase body mass. Subsequently charged on 18 April, Errani promptly admitted she had committed an Anti-Doping Rule Violation and asked for a hearing before an Independent Tribunal.<\/p>\n

At the hearing on 19 July, Errani\u2019s defence asserted that the substance had been taken unintentionally. The World #98 had been staying with her parents, and her mother routinely stored her drugs on a worktop close to where food was prepared making contamination possible. The Independent Tribunal accepted this probability, ruling that she \u201caccidentally\u201d ingested the drug, and that there could only be a \u201clight degree of fault\u201d resulting in a period of ineligibility of two months beginning on 3 August.<\/p>\n

Read the ITF\u2019s report in full here \u2013\u00a0http:\/\/www.itftennis.com\/media\/267586\/267586.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

As soon as the ITF made its announcement on Monday, Errani responded with indignation. \u201cI am extremely disappointed,\u201d she said in a public statement, \u201cbut \u2013 at the same time \u2013 at peace with my conscience and aware I haven\u2019t done anything wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concentration level for letrozole in the player\u2019s urine sample was 65 ng\/mL, equating to less than a single pill of Femara, according to Errani.<\/p>\n

The 30-year-old was also quick to point out that \u201cno-one has ever demonstrated [that using Femara has] any beneficial effects in female athletes\u2019 performance\u201d and that, on the contrary, it is \u201cvery dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n

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pic.twitter.com\/EcM2Bvu3ax<\/a><\/p>\n

— Sara Errani (@SaraErrani) August 7, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n