SERENA ROW
Williams refuses to provide a sample as she criticises testers
SERENA WILLIAMS has become embroiled in a doping controversy at her home in Florida ahead of Wimbledon which begins on Monday.
According to a report on the website Deadspin, a USADA doping control officer came to her house at 8.30 am on June 14 but was unable to get a sample from the athlete.
The American is believed to have refused to provide a sample as she is of the belief that she is being held to an unfair standard in comparison with her peers.
In 2018 alone she has already been tested five times while most other female American tennis players are yet to be tested once, and a spokeswoman for Williams gave Deadspin a statement on the issue.
It read: ‘Over her 23-year career in tennis, Serena Williams has never tested positive for any illegal substance despite being tested significantly more than other professional tennis players, both male and female — in fact, four times more frequently than her peers. She has vocally supported, respected and complied with USADA testing throughout her entire career.
‘While she willingly continues to submit to testing, there is absolutely no reason for this kind of invasive and targeted treatment.’
USADA have confirmed that the fact that Williams did not provide a sample did not render it a ‘missed test’ as it was a surprise visit and did not fall within the 60-minute ‘whereabouts window’ that every athlete has to comply with on a daily basis.
The 23-time grand slam champion was similarly angry having been tested twice ahead of the French Open and took to Twitter to vent her fury.
However, the fact that she is returning following pregnancy may explain the regular testing as athletes who return from long lay-offs are seen as a higher risk category than those in the flow of competition.
Meanwhile, former Wimbledon runner-up Eugenie Bouchard successfully negotiated the qualifying draw on Thursday, beating Colombian Mariana DuqueMarino 6-3 6-2 to secure a spot in next week’s main draw.
Ranked 191, the Canadian had to run the qualifying gauntlet in Roehampton and after winning two rounds held her nerve against Duque-Marino, who had narrowly missed automatic Wimbledon entry.
‘I was really solid today, I was a little nervous before,’ 24-year-old Bouchard, told the BBC. ‘I feel like I’ve earned (my main draw place) more than just being in by ranking, so I’m proud of it and I got matches this week which is what I wanted because I’ve not played a lot. I’ve been injured, so that was the goal.’
Russia’s 33-year-old Vera Zvonareva, runner-up to Williams in 2010, also claimed a place in the main draw with a straight sets victory over Caroline Dolehide.
The former world number two gave birth to her daughter Evelyn in 2016 and decided to start competing again only recently when she entered and won an ITF event in Egypt.