Fans React To Maria Sharapova Suspension – See Reactions

Maria Sharapova has been suspended from tennis for two years for taking a banned substance, the International Tennis Federation announced on Wednesday, and now her fans are reacting to the ban. See reactions to Sharapova’s suspension below.

As Extreme Entertainment reported, Sharapova admitted in March that for a decade she had taken a drug called meldonium to treat heart issues. On January 1, however, the drug had been added by the World Anti-Doping Agency to its list of banned substances, since there was evidence it could be used as a performance booster. At the time, Sharapova claimed she never read an email sent to her that included meldonium on its list of prohibited drugs. The issue was then taken to a tribunal that suspended Sharapova for the next two years.

Not surpassingly, there was a ton of reaction to the two-year suspension. A Twitter user named ‏@markymarknufc wrote, “@MariaSharapova I hope that you manage to get the ban reduced at your appeal as it’s a joke to ban you for this length of time.” And a person with the account ‏@juanabean expressed, “So, Maria Sharapova gets banned for 2 years for doping, but that rapist gets 6 months??? Something very wrong here.” “Everyone is crying but I remain calm because Maria Sharapova will do everything to reduce his sentence! I trust in justice! #KeepCalm,” advised ‏@ActuMasha.”

‏A Twitter user with the handle @salo08 similarly felt, “2 years is unfair!! But no matter what #IStandWithMaria #LetMariaPlay #SharaFamily @MariaSharapova.” And while ‏@bhdrakk tweeted, “Please keep strong and never give up” and “#IStandWithMaria #LetMariaPlay,” ‏@sinlw wrote, “@MariaSharapova you must accept responsibility for failing a drugs test! You alone should know what is legal & what is not! 2 years is fair!”

While it was announced on May 26 that Sharapova would be joining Russia’s team for the Rio Olympics, the new suspension means she will no longer be eligible for the games. Unless the ban is overturned, Sharapova cannot play competitive tennis until January 2018.