Sharapova Appealing 2-Year Doping Ban, Calls Failed Test "Not Intentional"
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LONDON, England (CBSMiami/AP) -- Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova said she will appeal a 2-year doping ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
She was suspended for testing positive for meldonium at the Australian Open.
The 5-time Grand Slam champion announced in March that she failed a doping test and said she was not aware the drug had been barred as of January 1, 2016.
Sharapova released a statement on her Facebook page, saying in part:
"Today with their decision of a two year suspension, the ITF tribunal unanimously concluded that what I did was not intentional. The tribunal found that I did not seek treatment from my doctor for the purpose of obtaining a performance enhancing substance. The ITF spent tremendous amounts of time and resources trying to prove I intentionally violated the anti-doping rules and the tribunal concluded I did not. You need to know that the ITF asked the tribunal to suspend me for four years – the required suspension for an intentional violation -- and the tribunal rejected the ITF's position."
She went on to say that because of this, she "cannot accept an unfairly harsh two-year suspension" and "will fight to be back on the tennis court as soon as possible."
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