MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday that he would not comment on the two-year ban of Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova, adding that another athlete would replace Sharapova at the Olympic Games in Brazil.
"No, I am not commenting on it. There will be another athlete participating [in the Olympics] instead of her," Peskov told journalists.
Sharapova, 29, was suspended in March after she admitted she had tested positive for meldonium, which is a metabolic modulator included in the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) Prohibited List, at the Australian Open in January.
On Wednesday, the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) Independent Tribunal announced Sharapova would be suspended for two years from participating in tennis competitions.
Sharapova said she would appeal the suspension, calling it unfairly harsh.
WADA, in turn, said that the organization would review the reasoning behind the ITF decision and decide whether or not to use the right of appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
