Brazil's Thomas Bellucci handed 5-month doping ban

This file photo taken on August 12, 2016 shows Brazil's Thomaz Bellucci returning the ball to Spains Rafael Nadal during their mens singles quarter-finals tennis match at the Olympic Tennis Centre of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Brazilian tennis player Thomaz Bellucci - currently number 112 of the world ranking- announced on January 4, 2018 he was suspended for five months last September for a positive doping control until February 2018. Pic/ AFP

Brazilian tennis player Thomaz Bellucci has been banned for five months after failing a doping test. The 30-year-old tested positive for the diuretic and masking agent hydrochlorothiazide during the Swedish Open in July, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said, reports Xinhua news agency. It added that Bellucci was not guilty of any "significant fault or negligence", accepting that the result was due to contaminated vitamin supplements.

The ban has been backdated to August, meaning the world No. 112 is free to return on February 1. Bellucci, who reached a career high of 21 in the rankings in 2010, said: "I could never imagine that a multivitamin made by a pharmacy could suffer crossed contamination in minimal amounts. I always took care and respected the rules."

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