Professional tennis player Goncalo Oliveira has received a four-year suspension after a failed drug test. The 30-year-old athlete tested positive for methamphetamine following a sample collected at the Manzanillo Open in Mexico in November.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) revealed that Oliveira attributed his positive result to potential contamination through kissing or environmental factors. Nevertheless, an independent tribunal found the evidence presented to be insufficient to support this claim.
In an official announcement, the ITIA stated that Oliveira would forfeit any results, prize money, and ranking points from the event where the violation occurred, as well as from subsequent competitions during the period between the positive test and the provisional suspension.
Oliveira, originally from Portugal but representing Venezuela in tennis, was provisionally suspended in January. Despite notifying the authorities of a possible anti-doping rule infringement, he defended himself by recounting an encounter at a bar with a woman who had consumed a recreational drug before allegedly kissing him.
Requesting a hearing, Oliveira appeared before an independent tribunal in London in September. Consequently, he has been banned until January 16, 2029, with the suspension already in effect this year.
Throughout his ineligibility period, Oliveira is prohibited from participating in, coaching at, or attending any events sanctioned by the ITIA members. While once ranked as high as No. 194 globally by the end of 2017, his current ranking has dropped to 460. Despite securing 18 titles in the ATP Challenger Tour and ITF Futures Tour, Oliveira has not competed in a Grand Slam event.
Notably, Oliveira narrowly missed qualifying for the main draw of the French Open in 2018, only to be defeated by Bernard Tomic in the third qualifying round. Tomic later lost to Marco Trungelliti in the main draw’s first round.
Additionally, Oliveira participated in the qualifying rounds at Wimbledon in 2018 and the Australian Open in 2024.