Five-time Grand Slam Champion Iga Swiatek Accepts One-month Suspension in Doping Case

 Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball against Italy's Jasmine Paolini during the Billie Jean King Cup semi-final tennis match at Martin Carpena Sports Hall in Malaga, southern Spain, on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball against Italy's Jasmine Paolini during the Billie Jean King Cup semi-final tennis match at Martin Carpena Sports Hall in Malaga, southern Spain, on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
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Five-time Grand Slam Champion Iga Swiatek Accepts One-month Suspension in Doping Case

 Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball against Italy's Jasmine Paolini during the Billie Jean King Cup semi-final tennis match at Martin Carpena Sports Hall in Malaga, southern Spain, on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball against Italy's Jasmine Paolini during the Billie Jean King Cup semi-final tennis match at Martin Carpena Sports Hall in Malaga, southern Spain, on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek accepted a one-month suspension after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine, a heart medication known as TMZ, the International Tennis Integrity Agency announced Thursday.

Swiatek failed an out-of-competition drug test in August, and the ITIA accepted her explanation that the result was unintentional and was caused by the contamination of a nonprescription medication, melatonin, that Swiatek was taking for issues with jet lag and sleeping, The AP reported.

It was determined her level of fault was “at the lowest end of the range for no significant fault or negligence,” the IATA said.

Swiatek is a 23-year-old from Poland who was ranked No. 1 most of the past two seasons but is now at No. 2. She won the French Open in June for her fifth major championship and took home a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics in early August.



‘Unbelievable’ Odegaard Transforms Arsenal and Gets Saka Smiling Again

 Soccer Football - Champions League - Sporting CP v Arsenal - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - November 26, 2024 Arsenal's Martin Odegaard Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge
Soccer Football - Champions League - Sporting CP v Arsenal - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - November 26, 2024 Arsenal's Martin Odegaard Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge
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‘Unbelievable’ Odegaard Transforms Arsenal and Gets Saka Smiling Again

 Soccer Football - Champions League - Sporting CP v Arsenal - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - November 26, 2024 Arsenal's Martin Odegaard Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge
Soccer Football - Champions League - Sporting CP v Arsenal - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - November 26, 2024 Arsenal's Martin Odegaard Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge

The goals are flying in again for Arsenal — and it just happens to coincide with the return from injury of Martin Odegaard.

Make that eight goals in two games since the international break for Arsenal after its 5-1 hammering of Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League on Tuesday, tying the English team’s heaviest ever away win in the competition.

Odegaard is back in Arsenal’s team after missing two months with an ankle injury. In that time, Mikel Arteta’s attack stuttered, with a 2-0 loss to Bournemouth and a 1-0 defeat at Newcastle dropping the Gunners well off the pace in the Premier League. There was also a 0-0 draw at Atalanta in the Champions League as well as a 1-0 loss to Inter Milan last month, when Odegaard made his comeback from injury as an 89th-minute substitute.

Since then, Arsenal hasn’t lost and the goals have returned. After a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday came the cruise in Lisbon — and Odegaard was at the heart of everything as Sporting’s unbeaten start to the season came to an end.

“He’s an unbelievable player,” Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka said of Odegaard. “The day he returned, there was a big smile on my face. You can see the chemistry we have. I hope he stays fit for the rest of the season.”

Odegaard was involved in the build-up to Arsenal’s first two goals against Sporting — scored by Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz — and was fouled to win the penalty converted by Saka in the 65th to restore Arsenal’s three-goal lead at 4-1.

Odegaard was seen flexing his leg after that but continued untroubled and was substituted in the 78th minute.

The last thing Arteta would want now is another injury to Odegaard as Arsenal attempts to reel in first-place Liverpool in the Premier League. Liverpool is already nine points ahead of fourth-place Arsenal after 12 games.