The Court of Arbitration for Sport is set to have a hearing Sunday on whether Kamila Valieva can continue to compete at the Beijing Olympics in the midst of a doping scandal after the figure skater’s coach went on Russian TV to say the figure skater was “clean and innocent.”
— Mike Pavitt (@michael_pavitt) February 12, 2022
The court says in a memo it is expected to release its decision on Monday.
Reuters reported coach Eteri Tutberidze spoke to Russian TV after the skater’s shaky practice on Saturday which had the 15-year-old phenom in tears.
Valieva’s practice included a fall on a triple axel — a jump she typically executes without a problem.
Valieva was doing a run-through of her short program when she fell. She later landed two combos, a triple flip-triple toe loop and a triple lutz-triple toe loop, before skating to the boards and giving her coach an emotional hug.
The court needs to make a decision before Tuesday when Valieva is scheduled to start competing in the women’s event — where she is the heavy favourite.
Valieva helped Russia win a gold medal in the team event on Feb. 7, but the medal ceremony was delayed because of what the IOC called a legal issue — later confirmed to be the handling of the skater’s positive test from December flagged for traces of the banned heart drug trimetazidine.
Results from the Swedish lab for the Dec. 25 test were only revealed this week, the Russians say, because of a delay caused by a wave of COVID-19.
The IOC, International Skating Union and World Anti-Doping Agency are challenging the Russian Anti-Doping Agency’s decision to lift her provisional suspension.
The CAS hearing will not decide whether she doped, only whether she can keep competing until there is a full disciplinary hearing later on.
Russia’s gold medal in the team competition could also be at risk, but that won’t be decided until later.
Canada finished fourth in the team event.
Earlier Saturday, Canadian IOC member Dick Pound said it might be time for Russia to take an Olympic “timeout” as the country deals with another doping controversy.
Pound, who was the first head of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), said in an interview with Reuters that the Valieva case suggests Russia has not learned from previous sanctions.
“At a certain point if they are absolutely incorrigible you end up with the position of take a country timeout,” Pound said. “We could say we can help you. You got a problem. We can concentrate on it. Take a time out for one or two, or three Olympic Games until you get this under control.”
Complicating matters is the fact that Valieva is a minor. Russia is already competing at the games as the Russian Olympic Committee — and their anthem is not being played — as part of sanctions imposed following multiple doping violations dating back to the 2014 Sochi Winter Games.
“The Russians don’t help themselves because they have been absolutely unrepentant,” Pound said. “They won’t admit anything, they appeal every single decision.
“I think the approach probably has been too lenient to allow them to compete as the Russian Olympic Committee.”
— With files from The Associated Press
Court set to hear arguments on Russian Valieva’s Olympic future on Sunday
Source: Pinas Ko Mahal
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