2023 Wimbledon champion Vondrousova receives four-year ban for refusing anti-doping test

Marketa Vondrousova, the 2023 Wimbledon singles champion, has been suspended from professional sport for four years after refusing to provide a sample during an out-of-competition anti-doping test at her home in December 2025. An independent tribunal concluded that the Czech player provided “no compelling justification” for her refusal, resulting in a ban that runs until 21 June 2030.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed the suspension, which was announced on 22 June 2026. The maximum four-year penalty for a first offence reflects the severity with which a refusal to test is treated, equivalent to a positive test. ITIA chief executive Karen Moorhouse stated, “You can’t have an anti-doping system where a player is in a better place by refusing to take a test than they would by taking the test and testing positive.”

According to the ITIA, a female doping control officer arrived at Vondrousova’s home at around 8pm on 3 December 2025, outside the athlete’s designated one-hour testing window, which is legal and common under World Anti-Doping Agency rules. Vondrousova did not let the officer enter her apartment, instead signing a refusal form after leaving to walk her dog. Nicole Sapstead, the ITIA’s senior director of anti-doping, said the officer made clear there were “significant consequences” for refusing.

Vondrousova, who is now ranked 122nd in the world and has not competed since January 2026, cited “mental stress” and fear following the violent assault of her compatriot Petra Kvitova in a 2023 home invasion. She argued in the tribunal that she was suffering from acute stress reaction and generalised anxiety disorder at the time, and that the officer failed to provide proper identification. The tribunal dismissed these claims, finding no evidence to justify her refusal.

In an Instagram post in April 2026, Vondrousova wrote, “The recent doping control incident happened because I reached a breaking point after months of physical and mental stress.” After the ruling, she reiterated, “I have never doped. I have never had a positive test. Just three days after the incident, I was tested again. The result was negative. Just like every test before it.” The case adds to a series of high-profile doping investigations in tennis, including those of Simona Halep, Jannik Sinner, and Iga Świątek. Vondrousova retains the right to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.