February 11, (THEWILL) –Â In the wake of the scandal surrounding figure skater star Kamila Valieva’s positive test at the ongoing Winter Olympics, the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) claims it is taking “comprehensive measures” to “keep the honestly won Olympic gold medal” in the Beijing 2022 team figure skating competition.
Valieva gave a sample containing trimetazidine during the 2022 Russian Figure Skating Championships in Saint Petersburg on December 25, according to the International Testing Agency (ITA).
The cancellation of the medal ceremony came after an adverse analytical finding was confirmed by a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)-accredited laboratory in Stockholm on February 8, the same day the team figure skating medals were set to be awarded in Beijing 2022.
Valieva appealed a temporary suspension, which was removed on February 9 by the RUSADA Disciplinary Anti-Doping committee.
THEWILL recalls that the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) secured first place in the team event on Monday (February 7).
The ITA intends to appeal the lifting of the provisional ban to CAS, although the complaint has not yet been filed.
Valieva’s participation in next week’s women’s singles event hinges on the outcome of the provisional suspension, while the team figure skating gold will hinge on the outcome of an RUSADA probe into a probable anti-doping violation.
The ROC has stated that the team figure skating medal was earned fairly and has promised to defend the team’s interests.
“Given the fact that the positive sample of the Athlete was taken not during the Olympic Games, the results of the athlete and the results of the team event during the Olympic Games are not subject to automatic revision,” an ROC statement read.
“The Russian Olympic Committee is taking comprehensive measures to protect the rights and interests of the ROC Team members and to keep the Olympic gold medal won in fair competition.
“The ROC also assumes that a full investigation will be conducted to determine all the relevant legal and factual circumstances of what happened.”
Valieva was an integral part of the ROC gold-medal winning team, dominating the women’s solo standings in both the short and long programmes. Valieva landed the quadruple leap twice, a feat that has never been accomplished at the Winter Olympic Games previously.
The team included Mark Kondratiuk in the men’s event, Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov in the pairs event, and Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov in the ice dance.
According to the ROC, Valieva has “repeatedly passed doping tests before and after December 25, 2021, including already in Beijing during the figure skating tournament.”
All of the results, according to the organisation, have been negative.
Valieva has the right “to train and take part in competitions in full without restrictions, unless the Court of Arbitration for Sport makes a different decision regarding her status in relation to the Olympic Games” according to the ROC.
The athlete is currently free to compete in the women’s singles event, which begins February 15 and has been training for two days. The Russian Figure Skating Federation added to the ROC statement by stating that it is assisting the 15-year-old figure skater.
A Russian Figure Skating Federation statement read: “The Russian Figure Skating Federation has no doubts about the honesty and purity of its athlete, will make every effort to clarify the circumstances of the incident and provide the athlete with the necessary comprehensive assistance and support.”
The case puts Russian sport under even more scrutiny. As part of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) penalties against Russia for the manipulation of data from the Moscow Laboratory, Russian competitors are competing under the ROC banner.
WADA initially imposed a four-year ban on Russia, but the Court of Arbitration for Sport lowered it to two years after an appeal, as THEWILL reported.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
