 Sesil Karatantcheva played her first professional tennis tournament when she was 14 years old. At 16, the French Open quarterfinalist was hit with a two-year doping ban. The Bulgarian, who beat Venus Williams in the third round at the French, was punished after twice testing positive for the steroid nandrolone, the International Tennis Federation said yesterday. She failed one drug test after losing at Roland Garros on May 31, then failed an out-of-competition test in Tokyo on July 5, the ITF added. Both tests were treated as a first offense by an ITF tribunal that met Dec. 14-15 in London. The ban took effect Jan. 1, and the ITF said she has three weeks to appeal.
Karatantcheva, who is in Bulgaria, did not comment. She and her father, also her coach, were expected to speak at a news conference today. The Bulgarian Tennis Federation also declined comment.
More tennis
Kim Clijsters withdrew from the Sydney International after injuring her hip and may not play in the Australian Open. The injury occurred on Clijsters' first serve during a warm-up for her quarterfinal match against Italian Francesca Schiavone. The second-ranked Belgian planned to have her left hip muscle examined further in Sydney today . . . Maria Sharapova has been diagnosed with a dislocated rib, but she still plans to play in the Australian Open . . . Andy Roddick was confirmed as the No. 2 seed at the Open, meaning he'll avoid heavy favorite Roger Federer unless both make the final. Lindsay Davenport is seeded No. 1 among the women . . . The four Grand Slams and a tournament at Key Biscayne, Fla., are becoming "mandatory" events on the WTA Tour, meaning they'll count in the rankings no matter how a player fares . . . Mario Ancic swept top-seeded defending champion Fernando Gonzalez 6-0, 6-3 in the Heineken Open quarterfinals in Auckland, New Zealand.
Sports and courts
A judge in Waco, Texas, denied a former Baylor basketball player's request to appeal his murder conviction. State District Judge Ralph Strother issued the decision in a letter sent to Carlton Dotson, who is serving a 35-year prison term for the 2003 shooting death of teammate Patrick Dennehy . . . A nationwide strike truce was signed by Italian unions for the period covering the Turin Olympics. The agreement will force the postponement of an Alitalia airline strike scheduled for the day of the opening ceremony.
Swimming
World champion swimmer Katie Hoff has signed a 10-year deal with Speedo, the longest athlete contract in the swimwear brand's history. Hoff, a 16-year-old from Towson, Md., won three gold medals at last year's world championships.
Soccer
Veracruz reached the finals of Mexico's InterLiga tournament with a 1-0 victory over Morelia in group play in Carson.
Cycling
A pro cycling organization demanded an apology from World Anti-Doping Agency chief Dick Pound, who wrote in a British newspaper that the sport supports a culture of "deliberate cheating." The Swiss group Cyclistes Professionnels Associes called the comments "disrespectful and defamatory" and has given Pound until Jan. 20 to apologize for the October opinion piece in the Guardian.
Death
Eric Namesnik, who won silver medals in swimming at the 1992 and '96 Olympics, died in Ypsilanti, Mich., following a car accident last week. He was 35. Namesnik was critically injured in the Jan. 7 accident, which was caused by icy conditions according to USA Swimming.
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