ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) — Australia’s top-ranked junior player has been banned for a year by a Tennis Australia tribunal for taking the party drug ecstasy.
Brad Mousley, 18, is the first Australian tennis player to be sanctioned for drug use in the decision announced Thursday.
The Adelaide-based Mousley, ranked the 17th junior in the world, admitted taking the drug at a birthday party in March. He was drug tested two days later after a qualifying match for a Futures tour event in Melbourne.
Mousley tested positive for the banned stimulant methylenedioxymethamphetamine, commonly known as ecstasy.
He faced a two-year suspension but told the tribunal he had not taken the drug to enhance his performance. The suspension was backdated to May 30, when he accepted a provisional ban.
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