Jannik Sinner, the world number one tennis player and three-time Grand Slam champion, is the latest name to join the list of banned athletes. Last Saturday, 15th February, it was announced he had received a three-month ban from tennis after a billionth of a gram of clostebol – a banned substance – was found in his body.
This was a highly anticipated decision after it was revealed that, in March 2024, Sinner’s physiotherapist was using clostebol to heal a cut on his hand. The news first broke in August 2024, stating that the physiotherapist had contaminated Sinner whilst massaging him.
While Sinner was cleared of any wrongdoing by the International Tennis Integrity Association, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appealed this decision, seeking a ban of up to two years. Sinner and WADA reached a settlement whereby the Italian would face a three-month ban.
Although WADA admit that Sinner had not doped on purpose, nor had he received any performance-enhancing abilities, but he had to take responsibility for the negligence of his team in allowing the substance to enter his body.
The ban, which came less than three weeks after the Italian won the Australian Open for a second time, has divided the public and tennis players alike with Nick Kyrgios pushing for a harsher sentence, whereas Aryna Sabalenka has questioned the fairness of being banned due to such a minor contamination, admitting being ‘scared’.
Sinner’s world No.1 status remains intact throughout this ban but could be in jeopardy if world No.2 Alexander Zverev or No.3 Carlos Alcaraz decide to jump at the opportunity to dethrone the Italian.
In light of this ban, let’s revisit some of the most infamous and controversial sporting bans from over the years.
Lance Armstrong’s lifetime ban
Lance Armstrong was regarded as one of the greatest road cyclists of all time. From 1999 to 2005, he won a record seven consecutive Tour de France titles – the most prestigious of the three Grand Tours. He also earned a bronze medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. All of these achievements and more coming after he had defeated cancer made Armstrong an icon in the sporting world.
Throughout his career, however, there had always been allegations of doping, which he had continuously, and furiously, denied.
Armstrong retired in 2005 after winning an incredible seventh consecutive Tour de France title, before returning in 2009 and retiring again two years later. It wasn’t until 2012 that the career-long allegations of his doping were proven correct.
The United States Anti-Doping Agency investigated Armstrong and discovered he had been using performance enhancing drugs throughout his career. Not only that, but he had encouraged his teammates to do the same, sparking the United States Postal Service Pro-Cycling Team doping conspiracy.
Armstrong himself was stripped of every result gained from August 1998 – including his seven Tour de France titles and Olympic bronze medal. He also received a lifetime ban and is unable to participate in any sport that follows the World Anti-Doping Code
A year later, in 2013, Armstrong appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and admitted, for the first time, to using performance enhancing drugs. Not only that – he admitted to doping through each Tour de France he won, and claimed it would have been impossible to win the seven consecutive titles without doping.
In the interview, he admitted: ‘I am flawed. Deeply flawed.’
Armstrong’s doping case remains one of the most memorable in history. His story is remarkable not for the broken records, but for being stripped of them. Once the most beloved sportsperson, he is now considered one of the biggest cheaters in sporting history.
Tonya Harding’s scandalous ban
While most sports bans come as a result of doping, figure-skater Tonya Harding’s came due to the actions of her abusive ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly.
A working-class athlete, Harding faced criticism throughout her career for her unconventional, powerful style of skating. She was an outlier – where others were graceful and delicate, she was bold and athletic.
This, along with her vibrant, hand-made costumes and wild hair, made the public and judges alike view her less favourably than the likes of the elegant Nancy Kerrigan – with whom Harding shared a fierce rivalry.
It was exactly what she was frowned upon for that led to her making history. Harding, in 1991, became the first American woman and second woman in history to successfully land a triple-axel in-competition. The triple-axel is a complicated jump requiring extreme athleticism which, obviously, Harding possessed.
Unfortunately, despite her many historic achievements, Harding will always be remembered instead for her role in the attack against Kerrigan – nicknamed the ‘whack heard around the world’.
In 1994, during the US Figure Skating Championships, Kerrigan was hit with a baton just above her right kneecap, forcing her to withdraw from the event. After an FBI investigation, it was revealed that Gillooly, then-husband of Harding, had orchestrated the attack and contracted the attacker, intending for Kerrigan to be unable to skate at the Championships and the Olympics so that Harding could have greater chances of success in both competitions.
Indeed, Harding went on to win the Championships, but Kerrigan recovered in time for the Olympics, winning the silver medal. Harding’s results paled in comparison, finishing eighth.
Gillooly pleaded guilty for the attack and faced a two-year prison sentence. He also implicated Harding, claiming she had knowledge of the attack. Although she argued this was untrue, Harding eventually pleaded guilty to conspiring to hinder prosecution.
As a result, Harding was stripped of her 1994 national championships title. She is also banned from the US Figure Skating Association for life. Harding later pursued a career in boxing, but this was short-lived, recording three wins and three losses over a span of two years.
Harding’s biggest regret? ‘Being married for the first time to an idiot’.
You can learn more about Tonya Harding’s life through the film ‘I, Tonya’, starring Margot Robbie.
Maria Sharapova’s year-long ban
Maria Sharapova is one of the most successful tennis players of all time, having won five Grand Slam titles and spent 21 weeks as world No.1.
Sharapova’s talent was hard to miss – aged 17, she defeated two-time champion and tennis legend Serena Williams to win her first Grand Slam title at the Wimbledon Championships in 2004. At 18, Sharapova became world No.1. She won the US Open at 19-years-old and the Australian Open at 20.
On clay courts where she struggled more, Sharapova had to wait until 2012 to win the French Open. This win meant she completed the career Grand Slam at only 25 years of age, and to this day she remains only one of ten women in the history of tennis to achieve such a feat. Sharapova won a second French Open in 2014.
In 2016, her career turned upside down.
She tested positive for meldonium – a banned substance that enhances endurance. Sharapova admitted to using the substance – she had been using it for the past ten years entirely legally and not for performance-enhancing reasons.
In fact, the reason she tested positive was because the substance had only been banned that very year – at the start of 2016 – by WADA, after studies indicated its performance-enhancing abilities. Sharapova was oblivious to this rule change, and thus, after having legally used meldonium for a decade, she was suddenly facing a ban of up to four years.
The scandal shook the sporting world, with even her rival Serena Williams admitting she was ‘shocked’ by the news. Having been the highest-paid female athlete in the entire world, many of her brand sponsors such as Nike and Porsche dropped her as the news of her failed drug test was revealed.
Initially, the International Tennis Federation banned Sharapova for two years. Sharapova appealed this decision, and the Court of Arbitration reduced the ban to 15 months, allowing her to return to court in April 2017.
Sharapova’s return to the sport was injury-ridden and she retired in 2020. Despite her ban, Sharapova finished her career with 36 titles. Her historical achievements confirm her as one of the most successful sportswomen ever.
Diego Maradona’s many bans
A legendary and inspirational figure that defined an era of football, Diego Maradona dazzled the world with his intricate dribbling and creative flair, forever stamping his name into the history books by leading Argentina to win the 1986 FIFA World Cup as captain.
It was this World Cup that birthed the iconic ‘Hand of God’ moment where Maradona, in the quarter-final against England, illegally used his hand to score the opening goal of a match that Argentina won 2-1, with the second goal also coming from Maradona – this time with an incredible dribble and finish, dubbed the ‘goal of the century’.
The 1994 World Cup would be a different story for Maradona, as he would make his last ever appearance and score his last ever goal for Argentina after being expelled for failing a drug test.
This was not the first time Maradona had failed a drug test – in 1991, while he was playing for Napoli, Maradona tested positive for cocaine and was banned for 15 months. He spent a little time in jail in Argentina as a result, and left Napoli.
At the 1994 World Cup, he tested positive for the banned substance ephedrine, and he was handed another 15 month ban.
In 1997, for the third time, Maradona failed a drug test, which ultimately led to his retirement.
However, Maradona remains one of the greatest footballers of all time. His status as a legend and sporting immortal is confirmed in the way he is remembered: stadiums are named after him, children all over the world are inspired by him. He brought pride to his country and silverware to his clubs.
