Sharapova appeal verdict delayed

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[September 14, 2016]    The Sports Xchange

Women's tennis player Maria Sharapova will have to wait a bit longer to learn the outcome of her appeal of a two-year suspension for testing positive for a banned substance.

 

The Court of Arbitration for Sport announced Tuesday that next Monday's decision has been pushed back into early October. This is the second time the decision has been delayed.

Sharapova received the two-year ban in June from the International Tennis Federation.

Sharapova initially announced in March that she had failed a drug test during the Australian Open in January. She said she tested positive for taking meldonium, a drug she has taken since 2006 for a variety of health issues.

The drug was added to the banned list at the beginning of 2016 and Sharapova blamed ignorance for failing the drug test.

The ITF had asked for Sharapova to be suspended for four years, but the rules state that she could not be suspended for longer than two years if it was determined her use of the drug was not intentional.

After the suspension, the five-time Grand Slam winner, said she couldn't "accept an unfairly harsh two-year suspension." She filed her appeal less than a week later.

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