British tennis star Tara Moore has blasted the sport’s ‘broken’ anti-doping system and claimed her life has been ‘ripped away’ after her four-year doping ban was upheld.
The former British No 1 doubles player also maintained her innocence while revealing she is ‘broken’ after ‘fighting for her life’ and being ‘failed’ by ‘organisations and people in power’.
The 32-year-old received the ban in 2022 after prohibited substances nandrolone and boldenone were found in positive tests Moore underwent during a tournament in Bogota, Colombia.
She was handed an immediate ban but was cleared by an independent tribunal 19 months later, who ruled the anabolic steroids had entered her bloodstream via contaminated meats eaten in the days before her initial urine test.
But last week, Moore had her ban upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport after an appeal by the International Tennis Integrity Agency.
She will be unable to compete for four years minus the 19 months she served while provisionally suspended.
Tara Moore said her life has been ‘ripped away’ after her four-year doping ban was upheld
The 32-year-old British star had her four-year doping ban upheld after initially being cleared
Moore has spoken against what she believed was preferential treatment shown to Iga Swiatek
‘The last three-and-a-half years have broken me into so many pieces,’ Moore said in a statement on social media.
‘As my family and friends have scrambled to pick up the broken shards of me, they’ve glued me back together in the form of a different person.
‘I don’t need a panel to tell me I’m innocent. I know the integrity I bring and I know I am innocent. I believe everyone over the past couple of years can see how subjective this process is.
‘I have been the underdog. I have had my life as I knew it ripped away from me because the organisations and people in power failed to do what was right. They may have taken my fight away on the court, yet my fight is not over, not for me or others like me.
‘The anti-doping system is broken. I am proof of this. We need to fix it. Not for me as it’s too late, but for future players who find themselves in this unfortunate situation. I have so much more to say when the time is right.’
Moore had argued that boldenone and nandrolone were found in her sample after she consumed beef and/or pork while in Colombia.
But a Cas statement said: ‘After reviewing the scientific and legal evidence, the majority of the Cas panel considered that the player did not succeed in proving that the concentration of nandrolone in her sample was consistent with the ingestion of contaminated meat.
‘The panel concluded that Ms Moore failed to establish that the ADRV (Anti-Doping Rule Violation) was not intentional. The appeal by the ITIA is therefore upheld and the decision rendered by the Independent Tribunal is set aside.’
Wimbledon winner Jannik Sinner was handed a three-month suspension earlier this year
Moore received the ban after positive tests for banned nandrolone and boldenone were found
The verdict from Cas’ March hearing into the appeal now means that the British player will be unable to return to competition until the start of the 2028 season.
Moore previously shared a heartfelt statement in the wake of the decision as she decried the ’19 months of lost time’ that waiting for the hearing’s verdict that she ‘bore no fault or negligence’ had stolen from her.
It comes amid ongoing controversy over doping bans in tennis.
Wimbledon winner Jannik Sinner was given a three-month suspension earlier this year after the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed the initial verdict that Sinner bore ‘no fault or negligence’ after clostebol entered his body via a cut on the hand of his physio that had been treated with the banned substance.
There has been significant debate over the perceived leniency of his punishment, which allowed Sinner to return in time to compete at the French Open – where he reached the final – without missing any Grand Slam tournaments.
World No 3 Iga Swiatek was similarly subject to debate over special treatment after she was handed her one-month suspension in November 2024 – having competed in tournaments after August’s positive test.
Since returning to the tour in April 2024, Moore has frequently spoken out against what she believed was preferential treatment shown to Swiatek.
Both Sinner and Swiatek were victorious at Wimbledon with the Italian claiming his first Wimbledon Championship and Swiatek her sixth Grand Slam title.
