Nikola Bartunkova, the 2023 Wimbledon girls’ singles runner-up, has been permitted to compete after accepting a six-month doping ban for unintentionally consuming a prohibited drug.
The 18-year-old Czech athlete was placed on provisional suspension after testing positive for trimetazidine twice in February and March. This drug is a metabolic modulator that is occasionally used as a cardiac medicine.
After conducting an investigation, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA( determined that a tainted supplement was the reason for such adverse test results. The ITIA concluded that “the violation was not intentional, and that the player bore no significant fault or negligence.”
With the exception of a first-round result at an event in the Czech Republic in March where she returned a negative sample, Bartunkova’s results between the first and second positive tests have been deemed null and invalid as part of her sanction. The athlete is now cleared to play because the time she spent under provisional suspension carries over into her ineligibility term.
Last year, Bartunkova won her maiden WTA Tour match after defeating Dayana Yastremska, who was ranked 21st at the time. In the Wimbledon juniors final last year, she was defeated by American Clervie Ngounoue.
Source: BBC