Exclusive: Tauziat calls for action on drug cheats

Outspoken Frenchwoman marks her Wimbledon swansong by slating 'the girls who abuse the system'

On the eve of her last Wimbledon, Nathalie Tauziat has delivered a stinging rebuke towhat she calls "the drug cheats" in women's tennis and has urged the authorities to undertake regular blood- testing at tournaments "to root out the girls who are abusing the system".

Tauziat has never been afraid to make a stand, or enemies for that matter. As a youngster, she refused to conform and opted out of the French Tennis Federation's coaching scheme, choosing instead to be moulded by the controversial trainer Regis de Camaret. Then, last year, she wrote a book, Women's Tennis Stripped Bare, in which she denounced the "evils" of modern women's tennis – and, famously, Anna Kournikova.

Having ruffled feathers and bruised egos for two decades, the 33-year-old has now decided to hang up her racket. But Tauziat made it clear last week that she is not planning to sneak away quietly through the back door. "I won't name individuals," she said, "but it's clear that doping exists in tennis and needs to be stopped. I have no hard evidence, but all I will say is that you don't have to have a degree in medicine to see that some of the players have transformed themselves almost overnight. It's time people stopped taking us for a bunch of fools. I don't care how much training or gym work you do, there is no way anyone can suddenly become stronger and faster in the space of a couple of months. How is it that some girls disappear for a few weeks, and then return looking totally different?"

Tauziat added: "That's why I think the Women's Tennis Association [WTA] should introduce random drug-testing at every tournament."

So far this year, only the quarter-finalists at the Australian and French Opens, as well as eight randomly chosen women, have been tested. "We also need more blood- testing if we are to get to the bottom of this growing problem. I'm particularly concerned for the younger players. They're often the victims of unscrupulous people, who try to sell products which allow them to recuperate more quickly. It must stop."

In fact, such is the concern over young players being tempted down a dangerous road, the International Tennis Federation are targeting this week's international junior tournament at Roehampton for an anti-doping campaign, aimed particularly at steroid use, or rather abuse.

Leading players such as Kournikova, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Gustavo Kuerten and Alex Corretja have pledged their support. The campaign stand will feature graphic images of the damaging side-effects of performance-enhancing drugs. "Educating young people about the dangers at the start of their careers can only be good for the young stars of tomorrow and for sport in general," said an ITF spokesman.

The federation fear privately that the disturbing use of the growth hormone EPO might be a problem for the sport at a time when no adequate detection is available.

Tauziat's book, which has yet to be translated into English, also tackles the problem of having a celebrity-obsessed Tour. Tauziat's concern that the likes of Kournikova are "stealing" the limelight was perfectly illustrated 10 days ago when the young Russian had dozens of members from the media, not to mention newspaper columns, dedicated to her launch of a new bra, while the Edgbaston and Eastbourne tournaments received scant mention. One tabloid even dedicated part of its front page to bemoan the fact that injury had robbed us of the lovely Anna this year. "Bad news... Anna's out of Wimbledon," the headline read.

"I have nothing against Anna," Tauziat said, refuelling the debate about the talents of a player yet to win a Tour event. "The media love her and she is very good at manipulating them. The only thing that does perturb me, however, is that she is forever asking people to concentrate on her tennis and then she does whatever possible to force them to talk of anything but her tennis.

"She is a decent player, but in a sense she encapsulates much of what is wrong with our game at the moment. There's far too much emphasis on style and publicity, and not nearly enough on substance. At Rome, for example, Kournikova did a PR stunt with Omega and the papers ended up giving that more coverage than the event itself."

Tauziat described her book as "the story of my life". "In it," she said, "I tried to be as honest as possible, telling people what my feelings were about the game and the Tour. What has disappointed me most about the way in which it has been interpreted is that people have used my words to say what they are thinking. Too many people have quoted my book when discussing an issue instead of having the courage to express themselves on the subject."

Tauziat, who is seeded ninth at the All England Championships, insists she is just playing for pleasure in this, her final, season, but her determination, both on and off court, suggests she is as focused as ever. Her win at Edgbaston last week offered a timely reminder that she remains a force to be reckoned with, particularly on grass. More pertinently, it proves that Tauziat is still very much a critic from within, not without, the locker room.

There will, no doubt, be those who express their displeasure at her openness, but Tauziat will be saving her emotions for what will be her Wimbledon swansong. "I'm not sure exactly how I'll feel or react once I'm there," she said, "but I intend to make the most of my final attempt to win the tournament. I'd originally planned for last year to be the end, but then I started enjoying myself again and my ranking stayed pretty good, so I decided to play on for one more season. Results this year have been decent and I'm just pleased to be having another go at Wimbledon."

Victory in the rain-delayed final at Edgbaston, as well as further progress at Eastbourne last week, mean that Tauziat is now fifth in the all-time list of grass-court match winners, behind Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, Pam Shriver and Helena Sukova. No wonder, then, that the Frenchwoman arrives in SW19 full of confidence. "Nobody is expecting me to do anything that special," she said, "so I can really go for it."

Much like the men's side, the women's draw is relatively open this year, following the withdrawals of Seles and Kournikova, as well as the injury problems suffered by the likes of Lindsay Davenport. Whether or not Tauziat – who reached the final in 1998, only to freeze on the day and be beaten by Jana Novotna – has the right temperament to win at the All England Club remains to be seen. So often in the past she has been within touching distance of a major prize, but failed to clear the final hurdle. Perhaps this is why it took Tauziat time – 17 years to be precise – before she even managed to break into the top 10 in 1998, at the age of 30.

Tauziat, though, is more assured these days and she believes this could be her year. "That lost final still hurts," she said. "It was my best and worst day rolled into one. It's just sad I didn't take my chance. But I'm stronger nowadays and I take defeat much less seriously. Don't get me wrong, that doesn't mean I no longer care. I'm not just doing a lap of honour here – I still have the desire to win things and I still hate losing. It's just that I'm more philosophical now. That's why I think I can do good things at Wimbledon."

The outspoken Tauziat may not be everybody's glass of Pimm's, but the Frenchwoman hopes that her honesty will eventually be vindicated. "Who knows," she joked, "Wimbledon might one day invite me to play in the veterans' doubles."