Halep ex-coach claims star is ‘not cheating’ as drugs ban hearing set
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Simona Halep’s former coach Darren Cahill has doubled down on his defence of his old charge after she was suspended following a positive drugs test. The Australian revealed that the two-time Grand Slam winner would have a hearing later this month as he remained adamant that Halep was “not cheating”.
Halep was “provisionally suspended” in October after returning a positive test for Roxadustat at the US Open, a drug which helps increase the production of red blood cells. The former world No 1 has since maintained her innocence, and at the time released a statement saying the positive test “came as the biggest shock of my life.”
The Romanian added: “The idea of cheating never even crossed my mind once, as it is totally against all the values I have been educated with. Facing such an unfair situation, I feel completely confused and betrayed. I will fight until the end to prove that I never knowingly took any prohibited substance and I have faith that sooner or later, the truth will come out.”
Her former coach Cahill released a statement at the time as he vouched for how strict Halep was with making sure any medicine and supplements were “legal, safe and permitted” and the 57-year-old has now reiterated his comments, saying he would “die next to” his previous statement.
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“I think a lot about Simona and I feel bad every time I think about the experiences she goes through,” the current coach of ATP star Jannik Sinner told The Big Deal podcast. Cahill also confirmed that Halep would finally have a hearing later this month, adding: “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.”
Referring to the statement he made back in October, Cahill added: “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.”
In December, it was reported that Halep had been able to find the source of the Roxadustat in a supplement that was incorrectly labelled, something she would present in court, and her ex-coach added: “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.”
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When the news of Halep’s failed doping test first broke, Cahill took to Instagram to write: “Firstly, and most importantly, there is NO chance Simona knowingly or purposely took any substance on the banned list. None. Zero.
“She is an athlete that stressed about anything prescribed to her by a medical professional (which was rarely), or about any supplement that she used or considered. Simona wore out the words ‘please double check this, triple check this to make sure it’s legal, safe and permitted. If you are not sure, I’m not taking it’.”
The man who guided Halep to the world No 1 ranking and her maiden Grand Slam title at the 2018 French Open also said that “Simona’s integrity is faultless” and added: “I believe in her. I always have and can honestly say never more than right now on this particular issue.”
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