TENNIS/Taiwanese tennis player suspended over doping violation

Taipei, June 19 (CNA) Taiwanese tennis player Tsao Chia-yi (曹家宜) was officially suspended Wednesday by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) for violating anti-doping rules, the agency announced.

Tsao's 12-month suspension will run until Feb. 28, 2026. She has been under voluntary provisional suspension since March 1, 2025, after being notified of the drug test results, the ITIA said in a news release.

During the suspension, she is banned from playing, coaching, or attending any tennis events authorized or sanctioned by ITIA members -- including the Women's Tennis Association -- and any national tennis associations, the agency said.

In January 2025, Tsao tested positive for the banned substance methylephedrine without a valid Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE), the ITIA said.

Methylephedrine is listed as a stimulant under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP).

The agency said Tsao explained the positive test was due to taking the cold medicine Pabron Gold A, which she bought in Japan.

The product contained methylephedrine, and although Tsao does not speak Japanese, she admitted she neither asked the drugstore attendant nor consulted a doctor to check if the medicine was safe to use, the ITIA said.

According to the receipts and photos Tsao provided, the ITIA accepted that her violation was unintentional.

The ITIA found no significant fault or negligence on Tsao's part and ruled that a 12-month suspension was appropriate -- a decision Tsao accepted.

In a social media post Wednesday, Tsao said she accepts the punishment imposed by the ITIA and is willing to take responsibility for her negligence.

She said she would never have taken the cold medicine had she known it contained a banned substance and vowed never to seek an unfair advantage intentionally. She also pledged to be more cautious in the future.

Tsao reached a career-high world ranking of No. 115 in women's doubles in August 2024. She teamed up with nine-time Grand Slam champion Hsieh Su-wei (謝淑薇) at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where they were eliminated in the quarterfinals.