Marketa Vondrousova has vowed to clear her name after receiving a doping violation related to a missed test—and she could be facing up to a four-year ban from tennis.
The incident dates back to an out-of-competition drug test in December. According to Vondrousova, an officer rang her doorbell after 8 p.m., refused to identify himself and demanded an immediate urine test. In an Instagram Story at the time, a shaken Vondrousova said she refused to let him in and called it a “serious intrusion of my privacy.”
Now, she’s been charged by the ITIA for “refusing or failing to submit to Sample collection without compelling justification after notification by a duly authorized Person.”
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On Friday, the 2023 Wimbledon champion took to social media to share her side of the story. Vondrousova opened up about the mental toll of injuries and sleep issues, as well as “years of hateful messages and threats” that caused her to hit a breaking point and “affected how safe I feel in my own space.”
“When someone rang my door late at night without properly identifying themselves or following protocol—I reacted like a person who felt scared,” she wrote in a lengthy message. “In that moment, it was about feeling safe, not about avoiding anything.”