Nick Kyrgios completes one-month ban following positive cocaine test
Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios has completed a one-month suspension after admitting an anti-doping rule violation involving cocaine, Qazinform News Agency reports.
The 31-year-old provided a urine sample on June 22 while competing at the ATP 250 Vanda Pharmaceuticals Championships in Mallorca, Spain. Analysis by a World Anti-Doping Agency-accredited laboratory in Montreal detected benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine.
The analysis of Kyrgios’ B sample subsequently confirmed the initial finding.
During an interview with ITIA investigators, the Australian admitted that he had used cocaine at a nightclub in Magaluf in the early hours of June 20, before the in-competition period began.
After consulting the laboratory, the agency concluded that Kyrgios’ account was consistent with the concentration found in his sample. The ITIA therefore accepted that the substance had been used outside competition and was unrelated to sporting performance.
Under the Tennis Anti-Doping Program, such a violation normally carries a three-month suspension. However, the sanction may be reduced to one month if the player completes a substance abuse treatment program approved by the ITIA.
Kyrgios submitted evidence that he had begun an approved treatment program on August 26. His conditional one-month suspension was backdated to August 4, when his provisional suspension took effect, and expired at 11:59 pm on September 3.
If the tennis player fails to complete the program, he will face an additional two-month suspension.
Kyrgios’ results at the Mallorca tournament have also been disqualified. He will forfeit all ranking points and prize money earned at the event.
The ITIA said this was the first anti-doping rule violation committed by Kyrgios, who reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 13 and advanced to the Wimbledon final in 2022.
The decision may be appealed by WADA or Sport Integrity Australia before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that the B sample of Kazakhstan’s middleweight world champion Janibek Alimkhanuly had been opened in Salt Lake City in compliance with international anti-doping regulations.
