This is an embarrassing new “file” for Russia. While the country has been banned from international sports competitions, following the institutional doping scandal organized at the highest level of the State, which broke out at the end of 2014, the Russian delegation present at the Winter Olympics in Beijing , under the neutral banner of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), finds itself at the center of a new case.
On Friday February 11, the International Testing Agency (ITA), the body that oversees the Olympic screening program, announced that the young Russian skater Kamila Valieva, 15, had been the subject of a positive anti-doping test at the end of December 2021.
Traces of trimetazidine, a drug used to treat angina pectoris, were detected in a sample taken at the Russian Championships in Saint-Petersburg on December 25 by the Russian anti-doping agency (Rusada). According to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), this drug can help with endurance and stimulate blood circulation. It was banned in 2014.
A decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which is responsible for sanctions, is expected by February 15, the date of the start of the women’s individual event. The participation of the teenager, grandissime favorite, is uncertain.
#Beijing2022: The International Testing Agency (ITA) informs regarding the case of figure skater Kamila Valieva.
▶️… https://t.co/GTGI4b9xzH
Special status
For her first steps on the ice of the Indoor Capital Stadium in Beijing, Kamila Valieva had been imperial during the figure skating team event on Monday, February 7, which ended with a crushing victory for Russia. In addition to winning the short program and the free skate in the team event by a wide margin, the young skater also became the first woman to land a quadruple jump in an Olympic competition.
The next day, however, the medal ceremony was postponed without any explanation being provided. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) then invoked reasons “legal”recognizing that they involved “athletes who have won medals”.
The information was already circulating among the followers of the Games: one of the new Olympic champions had been the subject of a positive doping control. Later in the evening, her name was revealed: Kamila Valieva. However, IOC spokesman Mark Adams declined to comment on Thursday on what he described as “total speculation”.
The situation was all the more complicated since the Russian is under 16 and, under the World Anti-Doping Code, she has a special status as such. He repeated it once more on Friday: “We have an ongoing case, so we cannot comment, especially as it is an underage sportswoman. You have to be careful. »
The result of Kamila Valieva’s control became known only on February 8, the day following the victory of the Russian team. Rusada immediately suspended the teenager on a provisional basis. But she had appealed the sanction and obtained its lifting on February 9. The young girl was back on the ice on Thursday, February 10. The IOC has decided to seize the CAS.
Questions regarding the consequences for the Russian skating team
Several questions now arise: what will happen to the title of the Russians in the team event? Will the points obtained by the girl be deducted from their score? Will they be disqualified? They would then be forced to cede the gold to the Americans.
The medals for the event have still not been awarded and no new date has been set. Can the ceremony even take place? Most of the skaters who participated in this competition, like the American Nathan Chen, had to leave Beijing shortly following participating in the men’s free program on Thursday, due to “anti-Covid-19” prevention measures.
The “Valieva affair” comes when in December 2020, Russia was excluded for two years from major international competitions and must give pledges before being able to return there. However, the country’s authorities have always denied the accusations of institutionalized doping, despite the accumulation of evidence.
Before heading to the Chinese capital, invited by his counterpart Xi Jinping to attend the February 4 opening ceremony, President Vladimir Putin told the media China Media Group : “We find the practice of “collective punishment” for offenses involving individuals, a practice which has recently become frequent. »
With 212 athletes engaged in China, the Russian Olympic Committee is one of the largest delegations of these Games.
