The Laureus Academy revoked tennis number one Jannik Sinner’s nomination for its annual World Sportsman of the Year Award on Thursday, citing his three-month doping ban.
Sinner, who accepted the ban earlier this month, had tested positive for anabolic agent clostebol which the 23-year-old said had entered his system from a member of his support team through massages and sports therapy. The ban will end on May 4.
“We have followed this case, the decisions of the relevant global bodies and – whilst we note the extenuating circumstances involved – feel that the three-month ban renders the nomination ineligible,” Laureus Academy Chairman Sean Fitzpatrick said in a letter addressed to nomination panel members.
“Jannik and his team have been informed.”
The Laureus World Sports Awards have been presented since 2000, with nominees selected by the global media, recognising individual and team achievement in sport. The nominees for this year’s awards will be announced on March 3 in Madrid.
Sinner, who retained his Australian Open title last month, failed two drug tests in March 2024 but was allowed to keep competing while he appealed his case.
The positive tests came to light days before the U.S. Open, when an independent tribunal cleared him of wrongdoing, plunging the year’s final major into controversy.
A number of players and fans criticised officials for allowing Sinner to play on despite the positive tests and believed that the Italian had been given preferential treatment because of his top ranking status.
In September, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appealed to sports highest court (CAS) against an independent tribunal’s ruling, which had cleared Sinner of any wrongdoing because it found he bore “no fault or negligence” for the failed tests.
WADA had said that finding was incorrect under the applicable rules, and that Sinner should serve a ban “of between one and two years”.
However, two weeks ago Sinner accepted an immediate three-month doping ban after WADA said it had reached a settlement on his period of ineligibility. WADA also withdrew its appeal to CAS following the settlement.
Sinner, who will return to competition before the next Grand Slam event takes place at the French Open, is the second high-ranked player to accept a doping ban in recent months after women’s world number two Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month ban in November.
(REUTERS)
