Gonzalo Oliveira has been issued with a provisional suspension by The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) after failing an anti-doping test.
Oliveria, who switched alligence from Portugal to Venuzela last season, has been issued with a pre-charge notice under Article 2.1 of the TADP (presence of a Prohibited Substance in a Player’s Sample) and/or Article 2.2 (Use of a Prohibited Substance without a valid Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE)). The sample in question was taken during a ATP Challenger event in Manzanillo, Mexico where he reached the singles final.
Oliveria’s A sample has traces of the banned substance metamfetamine which is a prohibited stimulant under the 2024 World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List. The ITIA confirmed he has no Therapeutic Usage Exception (TUE) that would have allowed him to consume the substance. Furthermore, Oliveria has declined to appeal his provisionsal suspension before a hearing takes place.
“Oliveira is prohibited from playing in, coaching at, or attending any tennis event authorised or sanctioned by the members of the ITIA (ATP, ITF, WTA, Tennis Australia, Fédération Française de Tennis, Wimbledon and USTA) or any national association,” the ITIA states.
The 29-year-old is a former top 100 player on the doubles Tour and last season reached new highs in his singles career. At the Brazzaville Open in Congo he became the first Venuzuelan player to win a Challenger title since Jimy Szymanski in 2000. He has also won 12 Challenger titles in doubles but the most recent of those was in 2022.
The last tournament Oliveria played was during the first week of January in Thailand where he lost his opening match in both singles and doubles.
Oliveira has yet to issue a public statement concerning his suspension. He is currently ranked 245th in singles and is the only player from his country in the top 500. In the doubles, he is ranked 446th.
