The U.S. figure skater in the wake of Valieva’s decision to go against anti-doping at the Winter Olympics
After the Olympics in Beijing, an international sports tribunal in Switzerland issued a final ruling against the Russian figure skater, which said she had committed an anti-doping rule violation.
The sample was collected during the Russian National Championships in December of 2021, and found to contain trimetazidine.
The move clears the way for the last medals from the Winter Games to finally be awarded, but leaves a black eye on one of the event’s most popular competitions.
“They’re not compliant with the rules today. The system failed athletes including Valieva and allowed Russia to hijack the world’s largest events.
With Valieva now sidelined and her stunning performances disqualified, the International Skating Union is now expected to determine who should receive which medals from Beijing’s team skating competition.
Russia placed first in the team competition, followed by the United States and Japan. Canada finished fourth. The US will get the gold medal after the move is made.
It’s unclear when a final decision on medal awards will be made, but U.S. officials voiced confidence that American athletes will finally be recognized for their apparent win.
“Today is a day we have been eagerly awaiting for two years, as it is a significant win not only for Team USA athletes but also for athletes worldwide who practice fair play and advocate for clean sport,” Sarah Hirshland, head of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, said in a statement to NPR.
Hirshland acknowledged the roster of U.S. figure skaters caught up in the Valieva controversy, including Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Madison Chock, Zachary Donohue, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Alexa Knierim and Vincent Zhou.
The International Olympic Committee decision to halt Russian anti-doping in the figure skating competition after the CAS decision (an interview with Tygart)
Tygart also described this decision as a victory for clean sport and said he hoped it would lead to more aggressive enforcement of doping rules to rein in Russian wrong-doing.
Dozens of other athletes around the world were caught up in the collateral damage from the scandal. The IOC decided not to award medals for the figure skating competition while the case was being reviewed.
A member of the US figure skating team said in an interview with NPR last year that they were dressed in their gear and waiting in a room for a bus to the venue when they got the bad news.
As the slow bureaucratic process inched forward with long delays between hearings, athletes from Canada, Japan, Russia and the U.S. waited to learn whether the Russian team would ultimately be disqualified.
“This case is further proof of the need for the IOC and the athletes to address the part played by athletes’ advisers in anti-doping cases,” the IOC said. “This is even more important if the athletes are minors, who are even more reliant on their entourage.”
This CAS ruling also came just days after the same sports tribunal heard Russia’s appeal of a decision by the International Olympic Committee that blocked Russian athletes from competing on behalf of their country at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris.
Russians are expected to be neutral athletes and not fly the national flag or play the anthem of their country.
The IOC, as well as other agencies, such as the World Anti-Doping Agency and U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, called out the coaches and doctors that allowed the use of performance drugs in children.
U.S. Figure Skeating Top Ten Team in the 2022 Winter Olympics After a Two-Year Doping Scenario
The International Olympic Committee said Tuesday it will begin awarding medals for the 2022 Winter Olympics figure skating competition, two years after a doping scandal during the games left many athletes without them.
The U.S. Olympic committee said Hirshland, figure skaters Evan Bates and Madison Chock and Tracy Marek, the CEO of U.S. Figure Skating will speak to the media later Tuesday.