(Reuters) -Australia’s two-times Grand Slam doubles champion Max Purcell has accepted an 18-month ban after breaching anti-doping rules, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said on Tuesday.
Purcell admitted to a breach of rules relating to the use of a “prohibited method” after unknowingly receiving an IV infusion of vitamins above the allowed limit of 100 ml in a 12-hour span and entered into a provisional suspension in mid-December.
The world number 12 said at the time he had informed the clinic he was a professional athlete and that the infusion had to be less than 100 ml.
The ITIA said the 27-year-old had received IV infusions of more than 500 ml twice in late 2023 but his full cooperation and information sharing during the investigation had allowed for a 25% reduction in sanction.
“This case does not involve a player testing positive for a prohibited substance but demonstrates that the anti-doping rules are broader than that,” ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse said.
“It also shows the ITIA considers intelligence from a range of sources with the overriding aim to protect everyone covered by the tennis anti-doping rules, and ensure a level playing field for all.”
Purcell’s suspension will end on June 11, 2026, after taking into account time already served.
“This case has been going on for months, seriously affecting my quality of life,” Purcell wrote on social media.
“From being unable to sleep and eat properly, and refusing to be by myself, to developing nervous and anxious tics which I still currently battle day to day.
“I couldn’t sit and enjoy anything without the thought of the case and the endless possibilities of what sanction I would receive. I was nothing but cooperative with the ITIA. I’m so glad this is finally over and I can move on with my life.”
Purcell will forfeit results and prize money from the date of his first anti-doping rule violation on December 16, 2023, to his first subsequent negative doping control sample provided on February 3, 2024.
He will also be prohibited from playing in, coaching at, or attending any tennis events sanctioned by the members of the independent ITIA, which was established by the sport’s governing bodies.
Purcell, who won the men’s doubles title at Wimbledon in 2022 and at the U.S. Open last year, is the latest Grand Slam winner to fall foul of doping regulations.
Four-times French Open winner Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month suspension last year after testing positive for the banned drug trimetazidine following contamination of sleep medication.
World number one Jannik Sinner was cleared of any wrongdoing after two failed tests for anabolic agent clostebol but accepted a ban of three months earlier this year following a deal with the World Anti-Doping Agency.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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