Martina Navratilova, the eight-time Grand Slam champion, has expressed her disappointment with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in a recent podcast. The tennis legend criticized the agency’s handling of recent doping cases, including those involving Chinese swimmers, and tennis players Jannik Sinner of Italy and Iga Świątek of Poland.
Navratilova called for a thorough review of WADA’s operations, stating that the current system is flawed and needs to be revamped. “I’ll be diplomatic and say it’s a mess. The whole system needs to be blown up and restarted” she said.
Her comments come after former tennis world champion Jewgenij Kafelnikow described the doping situation involving Świątek and Sinner as a scandal. Kafelnikow, who competed in the 1990s, joked that if he had taken steroids during his playing days, he could have played 300 matches per year instead of 170.
Navratilova also addressed the recent cases in which athletes were not punished for doping and WADA’s acceptance of their explanations. She argued that these athletes should have been held accountable and not exonerated, citing the agency’s tendency to give the benefit of the doubt in doping cases. “We want to catch cheaters, not those who test positive for a cream or a sleep aid. And in the fight against doping, there’s always a presumption of guilt” she said.