Former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova insists she has “never used doping” after being banned from tennis for four years by the anti-doping watchdog.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) on Monday accused the 26-year-old Czech player of not opening the door for an anti-doping officer in December 2025.
The 2023 Wimbledon winner said in April she was frightened when the officer rang her bell “without properly identifying themselves or following protocol”.
“I have never used doping. I have never had a positive test result,” she wrote on Instagram on Monday evening. “Throughout my career, I have undergone countless anti-doping tests and have always stepped onto the court with a clear conscience. Just three days after the incident that changed my life, I was tested again. The result was negative, just like every test before.”
Her lawyer, Jan Exner, told AFP on Monday they would consider an appeal but declined further comment.
An independent tribunal handling Vondrousova’s case ruled the evidence did not provide “any justification” for the world No. 122 to refuse the test.
“I do not want anyone to go through what I have endured over the past few months. Waking up every day with uncertainty, fear, and a feeling of losing control over my own life is something hard to put into words,” Vondrousova shared. “It has been an extremely exhausting and painful period that has affected me more deeply than I ever imagined.”
During the ban, the Czech player is prohibited from competing, training, or attending any events organised or endorsed by the ITF, WTA, ATP, Grand Slams, or national associations.
Czech news agency CTK quoted Vladislav Savrda, manager of Vondrousova’s Prague club, calling the ruling “absurd and scandalous”.
Savrda said the ITIA gave Vondrousova the maximum penalty but imposed much shorter bans on Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek when they tested positive. “They clearly wanted to avoid a scandal there. But now they have this opportunity and need to point fingers, and unfortunately Marketa is bearing the consequences,” he added.
Besides the Wimbledon title and three other WTA Tour singles trophies, Vondrousova reached the 2019 French Open final and won a silver medal at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics. She achieved a career-high ranking of world No. 6 on the WTA list in 2023. The player has competed in only two matches on the WTA Tour this year, withdrawing from the Adelaide International in January due to a shoulder injury.
