{"id":1776539,"date":"2026-02-17T18:00:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T15:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1776539"},"modified":"2026-02-17T18:00:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T15:00:16","slug":"atp-tour-event-introduces-no-meat-policy-due-to-drug-test-contamination-concerns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1776539","title":{"rendered":"ATP Tour event introduces &#8216;no meat&#8217; policy due to drug test contamination concerns"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"ps-article-content rounded-lg lg:mt-5 lg:border lg:border-card lg:bg-card lg:shadow-primary\">\n<header>\n<h1 class=\"py-4 text-xl font-normal text-title sm:text-2xl\">ATP Tour event introduces \u2018no meat\u2019 policy due to drug test contamination concerns<\/h1>\n<div class=\"my-2 flex items-center justify-between\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/author\/oli-dickson-jefford\" class=\"text-sm font-normal !text-author\"><br \/>\n                            Oli Dickson Jefford                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <time class=\"ml-3 text-sm font-normal text-info md:ml-4\" datetime=\"17 Feb 2026 6:00 PM\" data-ps-date=\"17 Feb 2026 6:00 PM\" data-ps-datetime=\"1771351216\"><br \/>\n                            17 Feb 2026 6:00 PM                        <\/time>\n                    <\/div>\n<div class=\"hidden justify-end space-x-4 text-xl sm:flex sm:!opacity-100\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/atp-tour-event-introduces-no-meat-policy-due-to-drug-test-contamination-concerns\" class=\"!text-info hover:!text-brand\" aria-label=\"Share to facebook\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <a 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hover:!text-brand\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/share.flipboard.com\/bookmarklet\/popout?v=2&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tennis365.com%2Ftennis-news%2Fatp-tour-event-introduces-no-meat-policy-due-to-drug-test-contamination-concerns\" aria-label=\"Share to flipboard\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/a>\n                    <\/div>\n<div class=\"sm:hidden flex items-center space-x-5\">\n                        <a class=\"!text-share-icon hover:!text-share-icon-active flex items-center justify-center\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" aria-label=\"Follow Tennis365 on Google Search\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <button id=\"t365-article-share-btn\" class=\"mr-2 hidden h-6 w-6 appearance-none border-none !text-share-icon outline-none hover:!text-share-icon-active sm:hidden\" data-title=\"ATP Tour event introduces \u2018no meat\u2019 policy due to drug test contamination concerns\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/button>\n                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5 border-b border-page\"><\/div>\n<section>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5\">\n<figure class=\"aspect-h-9 aspect-w-16 relative\">\n                                        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1320\" height=\"742\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"w-full h-full object-cover object-center !my-0\" src=\"https:\/\/images.ps-aws.com\/c?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tennis365.com%2Fcontent%2Fuploads%2F2025%2F03%2FTomas-Machac-1320x742.jpg\" alt=\"Pictured: Mexican Open winner Tomas Machac\">                <\/figure><figcaption class=\"flex items-center space-x-3 border-b border-mobile-caption px-3 lg:border-caption\">\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-1.5 break-words !text-xs !text-content\">\n                                Tomas Machac with the Mexican Open trophy                            <\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<div class=\"ciam-article-t365\">\n<p>The Mexican Open in Acapulco will have a \u201cno meat\u201d policy in the players\u2019 restaurant at this year\u2019s tournament, as the ATP 500 event looks to combat the risks of potentially serving contaminated meat.<\/p>\n<p>Action in Acapulco regularly attracts some of the biggest names in men\u2019s tennis, though players at the tournament this year face a revamped on-site menu in 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Contaminated meat has become a concern across tennis and all sports in recent years, due to the prohibited substances that can still be present in the meat when consumed.<\/p>\n<p>In February 2025, ATP player Nicolas Zanellato was found to have been of \u2018no fault of negligence\u2019 after testing positive for the banned substance boldenone in 2024, with the International Tennis Integrity Agency ruling that his positive test stemmed from eating contaminated meat at a tournament in Colombia.<\/p>\n<p>Last Autumn, players were advised to avoid eating meat when playing at tennis events in China, due to concerns that people could fail drug tests due to eating tainted produce.<\/p>\n<p>A document circulated to players ahead of the Mexican Open informs those set to participate at the tournament that the on-site restaurant will provide alternative options to avoid any risk.<\/p>\n<p>The document reads: \u201cTo minimize the risk of contamination with prohibited anti-doping substances, the Abierto Mexican Telcel presentado por HSBC, in collaboration with the ATP, will provide high-quality protein options that do not include meat.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The briefing further clarifies that various meat alternatives will be on offer for players and their entourages at the ATP 500 event.<\/p>\n<h2>Tennis News<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/wimbledon\/wimbledon-chiefs-tells-coco-gauff-and-novak-djokovic-they-will-not-be-making-any-changes-despite-backlash\">Wimbledon chiefs tell Coco Gauff and Novak Djokovic they \u2018will not be making any changes\u2019 despite backlash<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-features\/dubai-tennis-championships-withdrawals-retirements-field-wta-1000-decimated\">Dubai Tennis Championships withdrawals and retirements: Field at WTA 1000 event decimated<\/a><\/p>\n<p>It reads: \u201cAt Acapulco 500, no meat will be served in the players\u2019 restaurant. Instead, a variety of alternative protein sources will be available to ensure players receive high-quality protein that supports optimal performance and recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Further clarification on the document confirms that fish and seafood will still be available for players, alongside other protein sources such as eggs, dairy products, and pulses.<\/p>\n<p>Main-draw action at the ATP 500 event will take place from February 23-28, with Tomas Machac entering as the defending champion.<\/p>\n<p>The Czech lifted his first <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/atp-tour\">ATP Tour<\/a> title at the event twelve months ago, defeating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the final.<\/p>\n<p>World No 4 and 2021 champion <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/alexander-zverev\">Alexander Zverev<\/a> is currently set to be the top seed at the tournament, with world No 6 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/alex-de-minaur\">Alex de Minaur<\/a> \u2014 the champion in 2023 and 2024 \u2014 also set to compete.<\/p>\n<p>World No 5 Lorenzo Musetti has withdrawn from the tournament due to injury, though <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/ben-shelton\">Ben Shelton<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/casper-ruud\">Casper Ruud<\/a> are among the other notable names currently entered into the draw.<\/p>\n<p>Past champions at the tournament include Grand Slam champions Rafael Nadal, Thomas Muster, Juan Martin del Potro, and Dominic Thiem.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Want more from Tennis365? Add us as <a rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" target=\"_blank\">a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a> for tennis coverage you can trust.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Read Next<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/australian-open\/australian-open-blow-united-states-tennis-association-make-announcement-next-week\">Australian Open suffers big blow with United States Tennis Association \u2018set to make announcement next week\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ATP Tour event introduces \u2018no meat\u2019 policy due to drug test contamination concerns Oli Dickson Jefford 17 Feb 2026 6:00 PM Tomas Machac with the Mexican Open trophy The Mexican Open in Acapulco will have a \u201cno meat\u201d policy in the players\u2019 restaurant at this year\u2019s tournament, as the ATP 500 event looks to combat [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,249],"class_list":["post-1776539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-tennis365-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1776539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1776539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1776539\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1776539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1776539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1776539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}