Tara Moore cleared of doping, contaminated meat identified as source

Tara Moore, the former top-ranked doubles player from Britain, has been declared innocent of any violation of the anti-doping rules by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). On Saturday, ITIA stated that she should not be held responsible for the offense.

In June 2022, Moore received a provisional suspension after testing positive for a prohibited substance during a WTA 250 event in Bogota, Colombia, where she reached the final but ultimately lost.

The ITIA confirmed that her "A" sample contained Nandrolone metabolites and Boldenone, both of which are prohibited according to the 2022 World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List.

Moore vehemently denied knowingly taking any banned substances throughout her career.

Despite her claims, an independent tribunal appointed by the ITIA concluded that the presence of the prohibited substance was due to the consumption of contaminated meat.

This finding applied not only to Moore but also to another player, Barbara Gatica from Chile.

Consequently, neither Moore nor Gatica faced any period of ineligibility, and their provisional suspensions under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme were immediately lifted, as stated by the ITIA.

However, it is important to note that Gatica remains suspended from the sport due to separate offences related to the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program, according to the ITIA.