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Tennis star Maria Sharapova admitted to failing a drug test at the Australian Open earlier this year.

Sharapova called a press conference Monday to make the announcement. “I made a huge mistake,” she said. “I don’t want to end my career this way.”

The former Wimbledon champion said the substance she’s been taking throughout her career, a heart medication known as Mildronate or Meldonium, only appeared on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned list this year.

According to the NY Times, Sharapova said she got an email from the Agency back in December that included a link to a list of banned substances, which she did not look at.

“I have to take full responsibility for it,” Sharapova said at a news conference in Los Angeles. “It’s my body, and I’m responsible for what I put into it.”

During her competitive career, the 28-year-old won five Grand Slams, claimed one of each of the four majors, and has become a household name.

Watch the press conference above.

SOURCE: NY Times, Mirror UK | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty

Maria Sharapova Admits She Failed Drug Test At The Australian Open  was originally published on globalgrind.com

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