LONDON, July 13: Claims by Australia’s top doping official that drug use in professional tennis was widespread were “inaccurate, inappropriate and defamatory”, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said Friday.

Francesco Ricci Bitti, president of the ITF, said remarks made by Australian Sports Drug Agency (ASDA) chief executive John Mendoza on Thursday that tennis was heavily influenced by doping were “ill-judged and insulting”.

“Mr Mendoza’s remarks were not only inaccurate and inappropriate but also defamatory to our sport and to the tremendous efforts made by the ITF and its partners in the tennis anti-doping programme,” Ricci Bitti said in a statement on Friday.

“His remarks are ill-judged and insulting to the players and to the ITF, ATP (men’s tour) and Sanex WTA (women’s) Tour,” he said.

Ricci Bitti said Mendoza had acknowledged in a conversation with ITF executive director Deborah Jevans on Thursday that his remarks had been based on rumours and supposition and were taken out of context.

Mendoza was expected to release a statement on Friday to set the record straight, but Ricci Bitti said to his knowledge that statement had not been made.

Mendoza, whose agency was in charge of drug testing at the Sydney Olympics, was quoted as saying in The Australian newspaper that the problem was worse in the women’s game.

The use of performance-enhancing drugs, particularly steroids, was now so common in women’s tennis that the sport was heading towards a crisis like that which hit swimming at the 1994 world championships or cycling before the Tour de France drug busts in 1997, he was quoted as saying.

Mendoza’s comments were rejected as “irresponsible and damaging” by the Women’s Tennis Association.

“We categorically reject the claim that the success or physical condition of women’s tennis players today is proof of rampant drug use,” said Kevin Wulff, chief executive of the WTA, in a statement made on the WTA website.

He said several hundred anti-doping tests were carried out on more than 140 different players in 2001 at tournaments, grand slams and Fed Cup competitions.

“Stereotyping of our athletes as dopers is simply unfair and unacceptable. We will not tolerate remarks like Mendoza’s and anxiously await the retraction and apology we have demanded.”

Ricci Bitti said the ITF had asked Mendoza for a full retraction of his comments but said “...there is no way he can retract the damage he has done to our sport.

“Our best recourse is to work hard with our partners in the tennis anti-doping programme to keep our sport clean.

“We have a good record so far, despite Mr Mendoza, and we intend to keep it that way,” he said.

Ricci Bitti argued that the tennis anti-doping programme was one of the most professional in sport.

“The tennis anti-doping programme conducts over 1,200 tests per year at the grand slams, Davis Cup, Fed Cup, ATP and Sanex WTA events,” he said.

The ITF was about to extend the agreement it signed with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 2000 for out-of-competition testing.—Reuters