Former tennis world No.1 Maria Sharapova has told a news conference in Los Angeles that she "takes full responsibility" for a failed drug test at the 2016 Australian Open.
"A few days ago I received a letter from the ITF that I had failed a drug test at the Australian Open. I failed the test and I takes full responsibility for it," the 28-year-old Russian said.
The ITF said in a statement that "Sharapova will be provisionally suspended with effect from [March 12], pending determination of the case".
The five-times grand slam champion said: "For the past 10 years I have been given a medicine called Mildronate by my doctor, my family doctor and a few days ago after I received the letter I found out that it also has another name of Meldonium which I did not know".
Sharapova said she received an email from the World Anti-Doping Agency in December that noted changes to tennis' program for 2016. She said that the email including a link to a list of banned substances, but that she did not look at it.
Meldonium is used to treat diabetes and low magnesium and improve blood flow, among other things.
"It's very important for you to understand that for 10 years this medicine was not on WADA's banned list and I had been legally taking the medicine for the past 10 years," Sharapova said.
"But on January 1st the rules had changed and Meldonium became a prohibited substance which I had not known."

The agency said Meldonium was included on the prohibited list because of evidence of its use by athletes with the intention of enhancing performance.

Sharapova is at least the seventh athlete to test positive for the drug this year. Two Ukrainian biathletes and Russian cyclist Eduard Vorganov are among that number.

Russia's Ekaterina Bobrova, a European champion ice dancer, told local media she had tested positive for meldonium.

"I made a huge mistake. I let my fans down and I let the sport down. I have been playing since the age of four a sport that I love so deeply," Sharapova said.

"I know that with this I face consequences and I don't want to end my career this way. I really hope that I will be given another chance to play this game.

"I was first given the substance back in 2006. I had several health issues going on at the time.

"I was getting sick very often and I had a deficiency in magnesium and a family history of diabetes and there were signs of diabetes. That is one of the medications, along with others, that I received."

WADA released a statement on Tuesday afternoon, confirming that Meldonium was added to the 2016 prohibited list and adding that it had "previously been on WADA's monitoring program for the duration of 2015".

"WADA is aware of the ongoing, and highly publicized, case concerning tennis player, Maria Sharapova. As is our normal process, and in order to protect the integrity of the case, WADA will refrain from commenting further until a decision has been issued by the International Tennis Federation (ITF)," the statement read.

"Following that, WADA will review the reasons for the decision and subsequently decide whether or not to use its independent right of appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)."

No penalty has yet been announced for Sharapova.

Sharapova, who has struggled with injury in recent years, has not competed since being defeated by Serena Williams 6-4, 6-1 in the quarter final of this year's Australian Open.

She had played only four events in the last eight months: three WTA tournaments and the 2015 Fed Cup final.

At 28, Sharapova is one of tennis' biggest stars and has been the highest-paid female athlete for 11 straight years.

She has won five grand slam singles titles and claimed each of the four majors – the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open – at least once. Her most recent grand slam title came at the French Open in 2014.

Sharapova had right shoulder surgery to repair two rotator cuff tears in 2008 and had more shoulder problems in 2013 that she attributed to bursitis, tendinitis and a bone bruise. 

Source :AFP