Coach Darren Cahill remains fully confident that Simona Halep is fully innocent in her doping case and revealed the Romanian has a hearing scheduled for this month. In October, the ITIA provisionally suspended Halep after the Romanian tested positive for antianaemia drug Roxadustat.
“I think a lot about Simona and I feel bad every time I think about the experiences she goes through. I made a statement about Simona Halep’s case and I’m willing to die next to those words because of her integrity and her DNA.
There’s no way she’s cheating. She is a great woman and a great person. There’s no way she could have done the wrong thing. I wish her good luck,” Cahill said on The Big Deal podcast, as quoted on Tennishead. This month, Halep will reportedly have a chance to prove her innocence.
“I understood they found the source of the contamination, not sure if it was in food or supplements, but they found out where it came from. I don’t have much news, but I understand there will be a hearing in February that will give her a chance to present her case,” Cahill revealed.
Cahill has been supporting Halep since Day 1
Shortly after the ITIA announced Halep’s doping suspension, the two-time Grand Slam champion released a statement. In her statement, Halep described a failed doping test as “the biggest shock in my life.” Cahill, who guided Halep to two Grand Slam victories and the world No 1 ranking, also released a lengthy message on his social media.
In his message, Cahill described Halep as someone who is extremely cautious and underlined there was zero chance the Romanian knowingly or purposely took the banned substance. Throughout her career, Halep has enjoyed a very strong reputation on the Tour as many consider her to be one of the best role models for kids.
