Ilie Nastase, the former world No. 1, has sparked controversy with his recent remarks about Iga Swiatek’s one-month suspension following her failed doping test, suggesting that her relatively short ban was a result of her nationality. The two-time Grand Slam champion insinuated that Swiatek’s Polish heritage played a role in the leniency of her punishment.
Swiatek tested positive for trimetazidine, a prohibited metabolic agent, on August 12, just before the Cincinnati Open. However, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) announced on November 28 that the 23-year-old had received a one-month suspension, concluding that she bore “no significant fault or negligence” in the matter. Additionally, Swiatek forfeited the 390 ranking points and $159,000 in prize money she earned by reaching the semifinals at Cincinnati.
The ITIA accepted Swiatek’s explanation that the substance had entered her system through contamination from non-prescription medication she had been using to manage jet lag and sleep issues. As part of the ruling, Swiatek’s provisional suspension from September 12 to October 4 counted towards her month-long ban, meaning she had already served 22 days by the time the official announcement was made. During this period, she missed WTA 1000 events in Beijing and Wuhan but returned to competition in early November at the WTA Finals in Riyadh and ended her season at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Malaga. With the completion of her suspension, Swiatek is now free to compete again.
However, Nastase has expressed dismay at what he perceives as a double standard, pointing to the harsher penalty received by his fellow Romanian, Simona Halep. In an interview with Golazo, he stated, “Well, because she’s from Poland, that’s why it only took a month.” He went on to suggest that Swiatek’s nationality played a key role in the lenient ruling, comparing it to the fate of Halep. “They don’t give up, they’re not suckers like us. That’s why. That’s the difference,” Nastase added.
Nastase also described Halep’s initial four-year ban as unfair, calling the disparity “ugly.” Halep was handed a four-year suspension in September 2022 after testing positive for the banned blood-doping agent Roxadustat at the US Open. However, after appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), her ban was reduced to nine months in March 2024, as she had already served a significant portion of the suspension while sidelined since her positive test in 2022.
This comparison between the two cases has ignited further debate, with Nastase clearly unhappy about what he sees as an inconsistency in how doping cases are handled based on players’ nationalities.