!['No chance' Halep purposely took drugs, says former coach Cahill](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/c5/4c/77/-No-chance--Halep-purposely-took-dr-656166.jpg)
-
What's the fallout of Mexican drug lords' capture?
-
Video game makers see actors as AI 'data,' says union on strike
-
Chinese qualifier Shang to face Thompson in ATP Atlanta semis
-
Concern grows as Venezuela blocks election observers
-
'Massive attack' on French rail threatens more chaos
-
'We did it!': France breathes sigh of relief after Olympics ceremony
-
Blinken, in Laos, set for talks with Chinese foreign minister
-
Regional concern grows as Venezuela blocks vote observers
-
Historic river parade, Dion show-stopper ignite Paris Olympics
-
Rainy Paris Olympic parade dampens many spectators' spirits
-
G20 pledges to work together to tax ultra-rich
-
The one of a kind Paris opening ceremony: five memorable moments
-
Justin Timberlake seeks to dismiss DUI case
-
Warner Brothers Discovery sues NBA over Amazon rights deal
-
Kobe Bryant locker, Maradona jersey up for auction in New York
-
Historic river parade launches Paris Olympics
-
Stocks rise as US inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
New York family of Holocaust victim reclaims Nazi-looted art
-
NASA Mars rover captures rock that could hold fossilized microbes
-
Thousands evacuate season's biggest wildfire in northern California
-
Sinaloa Cartel co-founder pleads not guilty after stunning US capture
-
Ethiopia mourns victims of landslide tragedy
-
Lady Gaga adds sparkle to star-studded Olympic show
-
Airbus and Boeing supremacy secure despite turbulence
-
Teams sail down Seine in rain-soaked Olympics opening ceremony
-
Norris hoping for more after topping Belgian practice times
-
West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third Test
-
Trump slams rivals as he meets Netanyahu in Florida
-
Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine
-
Mott's England future uncertain as ECB chief fails to offer support
-
Trump meets Israeli PM Netanyahu in Florida
-
S.African police say 95 Libyans detained at suspected military camp
-
Blinken set for talks with Chinese counterpart in Laos
-
Norris heads Piastri in McLaren one-two at Belgian GP practice
-
G20 seeks common ground on taxing super-rich
-
European medicines watchdog rejects new Alzheimer's drug
-
Harris gets vital Obama backing in battle against Trump
-
Habib, Ebden eye Alcaraz and Djokovic shocks at Olympics tennis
-
Stocks rise as inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris opening ceremony
-
Two Sinaloa Cartel leaders face US charges after stunning capture
-
Spain train driver jailed for 2.5 years over deadly 2013 crash
-
Paris poised for Olympic opening ceremony spectacular
-
Judoka fails doping test in first case at Paris Olympics
-
Holder and Da Silva keep England at bay after West Indies collapse
-
Alpine F1 boss Bruno Famin to leave in August
-
Ethiopia declares three days of mourning after landslide tragedy
-
Brazilian dunes dotted with dazzling pools make UNESCO heritage list
-
Rain, cooling slow huge blaze in Canada's Jasper park
-
French Rugby's Jaminet suspended 34 weeks after racist video: Federation
!['No chance' Halep purposely took drugs, says former coach Cahill](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/c5/4c/77/-No-chance--Halep-purposely-took-dr-656166.jpg)
'No chance' Halep purposely took drugs, says former coach Cahill
Darren Cahill, a renowned coach who helped Simona Halep to Grand Slam glory, said Monday there was "no chance, none, zero," that the former world number one purposely took drugs.
The Romanian was provisionally suspended at the weekend for taking the banned substance roxadustat after she provided a sample at the US Open.
Halep insisted she would "fight until the end" to prove her innocence with the result "the biggest shock of my life".
The 2018 French Open and 2019 Wimbledon champion is the highest-profile player to fail a drugs test since Maria Sharapova in 2016.
Australian Cahill, who guided Halep to world number one in 2017 and her Roland Garros crown in a six-year alliance, leapt to her defence in a lengthy Instagram post.
"Firstly, and most importantly, there is NO chance Simona knowingly or purposely took any substance on the banned list. None. Zero," he wrote.
"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'."
He said they both strongly believed in the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) testing programme and would often discuss the number of times she was tested.
"She did it without complaint, with the reassurance of knowing other athletes were being tested just as frequently.
"Competing against clean athletes was important to her. It's important to everyone and while the system is not perfect, it works."
He added that her integrity was "faultless", ending: "I stand with Simo."
The ITIA, which oversees tennis' anti-doping programme, said it had informed her on October 7 of her provisional suspension.
It said Halep had exercised her right to have her 'B' sample analysed, which confirmed the presence of roxadustat.
B.Shevchenko--BTB