A figure in Simona Halep’s doping investigation claims that he has clear evidence that she has been a victim of contamination and has blasted the decision to ban her for four years.
On Tuesday the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) published its decision following a lengthy investigation that has included roughly 8000 pages of scientific and other evidence from both the player and ITIA. Halep tested positive for roxadustat during the 2022 US Open. An anti-anemia drug that is used to stimulate the production of red blood cells. She was also later found to have irregularities in her biological passport based on an analysis of 51 blood samples. Subsequently, an independent panel has found her guilty of violating two anti-doping rules which have resulted in her being suspended from the sport until 2026.
Jean-Claude Alvarez has been involved in Halep’s anti-doping case after being contacted by the former world No.1. He currently works as the director of the toxicology laboratory at Garches University Hospital in France and stands by the tennis player’s claim that she is innocent.
“We think we’re dreaming. Here, we are in the process of condemning an innocent person,” Alvarez told L’Equipe.
“The concentration in her hair, it is not possible that she takes roxadustat effectively. Roxadustat is a molecule that almost does not exist in Europe, it does not exist in the United States and it is contaminated twice according to the ITIA.”
According to Alvarez, Halep got contaminated with roxadustat after using a collagen powder that contained the substance. He says the ingredients in that product came from China where the substance is ‘very common.’ It is not known if Halep or a member of her team made efforts to check that the powder was fine to use under anti-doping regulations.
“The roxadustat level is 0.2 nanograms per millilitre (in urine) for Simona Halep. It doesn’t mean anything anymore. You may have them if you take dietary supplements. It is bullshit,” he argues.
“We have identified the source. It’s collagen (powder to mix with water for physical pain), and there is roxadustat in it. Its collagen is made with ingredients that come from China. In China, roxadustat is very common.’
“The source of the contamination is very clear. There is a patient treated in France with roxadustat, I took a hair sample from this lady. I have over 100 times more concentration in this lady’s hair than Simona’s. We are experiencing a real scandal from WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency).”
As for the procedure used to detect the powder, Halep provided a list of everything she had taken leading to the check-up. The powder tested positive for the substance 14 out of 14 times. However, when this was sent to a WADA laboratory nothing was found. No contamination was also discovered by Pascal Kintz who works at a toxicology laboratory in Strasbourg. However, Kintz later found traces of roxdustat in the powder after using Alvarez’s method instead of his own. It is unclear as to how these methods are different.
In their findings, the ITIA accepted Halep’s explanation that she had taken a contaminated product but concluded that the volume she ingested couldn’t have resulted in the concentration of roxadustat found in her positive sample. Alvarez counters this argument by claiming he did his own experiment on a colleague that used the powder for six days. During this time, seven out of 35 samples taken from this person produced a positive test.
Alvarez was one of four ‘expert witnesses’ Halep used in her case. The other three were Professor Coquerel, Professor Kintz and Paul Scott.
Halep is set to launch an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against her ban.
