Tennis
Markéta Vondroušová refused a random doping test at the end of 2025. Robert Prange / Getty Images
2023 Wimbledon champion Markéta Vondroušová has been suspended for four years after refusing a doping test in early December 2025.
An independent tribunal gave Vondroušová, who is an Olympic silver medalist and has a career-high ranking of world No. 6, the maximum penalty for the offence. The 26-year-old Czech did not submit a sample when notified by a Doping Control Officer (DCO) during an out-of-competition test attempt at her home at around 8 p.m. on December 3, 2025.
Advertisement
Vondroušová was charged by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), which oversees anti-doping in tennis, in February. Vondroušová issued a statement on Instagram in April, detailing how the random visit from a doping control official, outside of her one-hour whereabouts slot for testing, caused an “acute stress reaction” which, she said, prevented her from thinking clearly.
During an independent tribunal convened by the ITIA, Vondroušová presented explanations that stress and poor mental health had affected her decision making, in addition to concerns for her safety.
She submitted clinical evidence that she was suffering from an acute stress reaction, ITIA senior director for anti-doping, Nicole Sapstead, said in a video briefing Monday.
Sapstead said that there was a “high bar” for refusing a test, and gave a funeral of a close relative or partner going into labor as examples of a “compelling justification.” In this case, the ITIA recommended that Vondroušová, who has not played since January because of injury, be given the maximum punishment.
“We asked them to apply the rules, which was to start at four years,” Sapstead said. “It’s then clearly the job of the tribunal to then consider all the evidence.” Russian men’s player Vladislav Ivanov was also given a four-year ban in December 2023 for refusing a test.
The tribunal concluded that Vondroušová’s evidence offered “no compelling justification” for her refusal.
Vondroušová issued a statement on Instagram after the ban was announced, describing the last seven months as the “hardest of my life.”
“I have never doped,” she wrote. “I have never had a positive test. Throughout my entire career, I have undergone countless anti-doping controls and have always stepped onto the court with a clear conscience. Just three days after the incident that ultimately changed my life, I was tested again.
“The result was negative, just like every test before it.
Advertisement
“A time when I had to open up my private life in ways most people would only share with their closest loved ones. A time when I did everything in my power to show that I had nothing to hide. I cooperated. I answered every question. I provided everything that was asked of me. I testified before the tribunal and did my best to explain what happened. I gave it everything I had. Every bit of my energy, strength, and belief.
“One of the hardest things was coming to terms with the fact that the future of the career I had spent my entire life building was no longer in my hands. All the while, you hope that the truth will be enough. That everything will be explained. That if you are honest, cooperative, and do everything you can, it will be enough. But sometimes it isn’t.”
In a statement, ITIA chief executive Karen Moorhouse said: “We understand that the testing process is uncomfortable, and acknowledge that it is an additional burden for players whose jobs already come with a high level of pressure and scrutiny, but it is essential to protect fair competition.
“Safety and welfare of players and our testers is really important to us. Our testers are well-trained, professional, and the gender of our testing witness always matches the player. They carry ID at all times, and players are able to verify their identity in other ways if they are ever unsure.”
The player, the ITIA, and the player’s national anti-doping organization have a right to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Vondroušová’s lawyer, Dr Jan Exner, said via text message: “We will review the written reasons and decide on our next course of action. First, we must consult with Markéta; I do not want to speculate on further steps at this moment.”
The full written decision will be issued in “due course,” the ITIA said. As with all ITIA cases, Vondroušová will have access to independent and confidential wellbeing support through the organization’s player support programme.
Advertisement
In her Instagram statement in April, Vondroušová said that: “The recent doping control incident happened because I reached a breaking point after months of physical and mental stress.
“When someone rang my door late at night without properly identifying themselves or following protocol — I reacted as a person who felt scared. In that moment, it was about feeling safe, not about avoiding anything.
“Experts confirmed I suffered an Acute Stress Reaction (F43.O) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (F41.1). In that moment, fear clouded my judgment and I just couldn’t process the situation rationally. After what happened to Petra (Kvitová, the fellow Czech Wimbledon champion who was stabbed in her own home 10 years ago), we don’t take strangers at our door lightly.”
During Monday’s briefing, Sapstead said that a single female doping control officer attended Vondroušová’s property.
“The player signed the refusal form outside. She left her apartment to walk her dog and made it clear to the doping control officer that she was refusing a test. The doping control officer asked her to sign the form to indicate as much.
“We ask our doping control officers to be as clear as possible when they’re engaging with players. It’s not for them to tell the player where a sanction may lay or (what could happen) if they choose to refuse. But what we do say is, please make it very clear that there are consequences, some significant consequences, if that individual refuses.
“So, yes, that was made very clear to the player. It was very clear that the player did not wish to engage with the process.”
Dr Exner declined to comment on Sapstead’s account.
Tennis’ whereabouts rules require players to give a location and time slot when they can be tested for each day of the year. Refusing one, or failing to update whereabouts three times within 12 months, can lead to a player being sanctioned.
Advertisement
In Vondroušová’s case, the tester arrived outside of the testing window she had given, and, she said, also failed to identify themselves. In addition to their whereabouts submissions, players can also be randomly tested at any time according to the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme (TADP).
Unpredictable testing is an essential tool to protect clean sport,” Moorhouse said Monday.
“The independent tribunal ultimately supported
The World Anti-Doping (WADA) Code states that the ITIA has to test outside of the hour a certain number of times, an ITIA spokesperson said via text message in April. WADA spokesperson James Fitzgerald said via email last year: “The point of out-of-competition testing is that it is a surprise. Sample collection can take place outside the times given (within certain parameters that respect reasonable access and privacy concerns).”
Those parameters include not turning up at player’s homes for a test between 11pm and 5am, apart from in “exceptional” circumstances, Sapstead said.
On the briefing, Moorhouse said that ensuring players are aware that they can be tested outside of the designated hours was a “collective challenge for everyone across the sport.” She added that this year the ITIA had extended the requirement to take their online education program to coaches and agents.
Vondroušová’s suspension will end on 21 June 2030, when she will be 30. While suspended, she is not allowed to play in, coach at, or attend any events organised or sanctioned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), WTA, ATP, the Grand Slams, or any national association.
Spot the pattern. Connect the terms
Find the hidden link between sports terms
Play today's puzzle
Leave a Reply