By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Friday, February 21, 2025
Photograph credit score: Corleve/Mark Peterson
Unhealthy beef is the important thing to setting Nicolas Zanellato free from provisional suspension.
World No. 754 Zanelatto, who has been serving a provisional suspension since final August after failing a doping check, is eligible to return to play instantly after proving his optimistic check for boldenone got here from ingesting contaminated Colombian beef.
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Following an investigation, which included interviews, overview of detailed documentation, and recommendation from unbiased WADA-approved scientists, the Worldwide Tennis Integrity Company discovered that Zanellato “bore No Fault or Negligence for [his] Anti-Doping Rule Violation.”
Zanellato, who reached a career-high world singles rating of 458 in April 2024, supplied an in-competition pattern whereas competing in an ATP Challenger occasion in Ibagué, Colombia, on June twenty fifth, 2024.
Boldenone, a banned steroid, is often used within the Colombian cattle trade to advertise progress in animals earlier than slaughter. Boldenone is authorized in Colombia, which is the place Zanellato ate the contaminated beef in a restaurant.
Zanellato was provisionally suspended since August twelfth, 2024, having unsuccessfully appealed his case earlier than an unbiased tribunal chair on August twenty second.
Since then, Zanellato subsequently obtained additional proof and documentation in help of his case. That proof “included detailed receipts, and knowledge on the supply of meat consumed throughout various visits to an unbiased restaurant exterior of the event surroundings,” the ITIA stated.
The ITIA performed its personal parallel investigation into the case, and concluded “the reason was verified as believable by unbiased scientific specialists.”
If this case sounds surprisingly familliar don’t fret, you aren’t having a boldenone-induced flashback.
Again in 2020, the ITF reinstated doubles co-world No. 1 Robert Farah after accepting his declare consuming contaminated meat in his native Colombia prompted him to fail a doping check.
Robert Farah, like Zanellato, was provisionally suspended after testing optimistic for boldenone.
Farah, who ate a beef dinner cooked by his mother, supplied receipts to show his case. Farah confirmed his passport and flight report receipts as proof he was in Colombia earlier than his optimistic check. His mom produced the grocery store receipt of her buy of the meat two days earlier than her son’s arrival, the market supervisor testified the meat got here from a cattle firm in northern Colombia and ranchers from the plant testified they routinely used boldenone on cattle.
An ethical from each tales: Tennis execs watch out consuming meat in Colombia and in the event you do, then make sure you save your reciepts.
