MADRID (Reuters) – The Laureus Academy revoked tennis number one Jannik Sinner’s nomination for its annual World Sportsman of the Year Award on Thursday, citing his three-month doping ban.
Sinner, who accepted the ban earlier this month, had tested positive for anabolic agent clostebol which the 23-year-old said had entered his system from a member of his support team through massages and sports therapy. The ban will end on May 4.
“We have followed this case, the decisions of the relevant global bodies and – whist we note the extenuating circumstances involved – feel that the three-month ban renders the nomination ineligible,” Laureus Academy Chairman Sean Fitzpatrick said in a letter addressed to nomination panel members.
“Jannik and his team have been informed.”
The Laureus World Sports Awards have been presented since 2000, with nominees selected by the global media, recognising individual and team achievement in sport. The nominees for this year’s awards will be announced on March 3 in Madrid.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas in Madrid and Amy Tennery in New York; editing by Mark Heinrich and Pritha Sarkar)
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