Beijing (AP) – After the start permit for her second gold mission, Russia’s figure skating star Kamila Valiyeva cried in front of the TV camera.
“These are probably tears of happiness, but also of sorrow,” the 15-year-old told Russian state television. After “very difficult days” for her, she is happy, but at the same time emotionally tired: “And yet I’m definitely happy to be at the Olympic Games and to try to represent my country.”
Hours earlier, despite her doping offense, Valiyeva had fought for permission to compete for her second Olympic gold, but she will not be allowed to take a medal with her from Beijing. The International Court of Arbitration for Sports paved the way for the figure skating favorite at the Winter Games in urgent proceedings to the women’s singles. But it was not an acquittal for Valiewa. On Monday, after a hearing lasting more than five hours, the Cas initially rejected the objections to the lifting of the provisional ban for the figure skater.
A “protected person” under the Wada Code
While the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) accused Russia of serious mistakes in dealing with the doping case, the International Olympic Committee reacted coolly to the decision: If Valiyeva wins another medal after team gold, there will be no award ceremony and none Giving a flower ceremony right after the competition. That was decided by the IOC executive.
In the urgent proceedings also brought by the IOC, the Cas ruled in favor of Valiyeva, who is considered a talent of the century, for two reasons. As a minor, she is a “protected person” under the Wada Code. In addition, given the unclear evidence and the delays in the evaluation of the doping test, it would be unfair to deny the European champion a start in the women’s singles on Tuesday. A starting ban would Valiewa “under these circumstances cause irreparable damage,” said the sports lawyers of the Cas.
Wada: Rusada is complicit in the delay
Wada did not want to agree with this reasoning. On the contrary: the lifting of Valiyeva’s provisional ban after the positive doping test in December 2021 by the Disciplinary Committee of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (Rusada) would “not comply with the provisions of the Wada Code,” Wada said.
As the World Agency explained, the Code “does not contain any specific exceptions to mandatory provisional suspensions for “protected persons”, including minors.” WADA also did not accept the Cas argument that it would be unfair to deny the Russian from further Olympic participation due to unclear evidence and the delays in the evaluation of the doping test. Rusada is partly to blame for the delay.
“As far as athlete sample analysis is concerned, Wada always expects anti-doping organizations to be in liaison with the laboratories,” the statement said. This is to ensure that they speed up the sample analysis and get the results before the athletes travel to or compete in major events such as the Olympic Games.
“According to the information available to Wada, the sample in this case was not marked as a priority sample by Rusada when it was received by the anti-doping laboratory in Stockholm,” the World Agency said. “This meant the lab didn’t know to expedite the analysis of that sample.” The test result arrived at Rusada on February 7 – after the Russian team had won team gold with Valiyeva in Beijing.
Rusada has denied allegations. Valiyeva’s sample was sent to the Stockholm laboratory in good time, she said. However, the laboratory announced a little later that the evaluation was being delayed due to the current corona situation. Stockholm later assured that the rehearsal would be given priority and that the result would be available before the games started. Nevertheless, it was finally received by Rusada on February 7th.
Russia’s Olympic ban ended at the end of 2022
The US Olympic Committee strongly criticized the verdict. “The athletes have the right to know that they compete under fair conditions. Unfortunately, this right has been denied today,” said Managing Director Sarah Hirshland. “This appears to be another chapter in Russia’s systematic and pervasive disregard for clean sports.”
For Russia, the dispute is about more than just the doping offense in figure skating. The country is under lockdown for organized manipulation and the cover-up of sports fraud, as it was at the Tokyo Summer Games. The Russian athletes may only compete as representatives of the Russian Olympic Committee ROC. The Russian anthem may not be played and the flag may not be hoisted at award ceremonies. The two-year Olympic ban expires at the end of the year.
The Kremlin did not go into the pros and cons of the figure skating affair. “We, the whole country, want Kamila to win the Olympics,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Interfax. For Sports Minister Oleg Matyzin, the Cas statement is the “only right and just decision.”
Regardless of the doping scandal, the Kremlin hopes to participate without restrictions at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris. “We believe that Russia is fulfilling all its obligations,” said Peskov. “We hope that we will enter a normal, full-fledged participation regime as early as the next Olympic cycle.”
DOSB: “A special doping case”
The German Olympic Sports Confederation has concerns. It becomes “clear that allowing the ban on Russian sport to expire at the end of the year does not take sufficient account of the differences between the individual sports,” said DOSB President Thomas Weikert. “An individual consideration of each sport might be more appropriate in terms of a consistent anti-doping fight.”
The DOSB boss also emphasized that this verdict on a positive A sample of a minor “related to a special doping case”. However, in the Valiyeva case, the fundamental question arises as to “which competitive sport we actually want to have,” said Weikert. “The current case strengthens our belief that young athletes must be given time – a humane competitive sport should not demand too much too soon.”
Rusada had reported that it had also initiated an investigation into other people close to the athlete because she was a minor. However, the suspension was lifted by the Rusada Disciplinary Committee on February 9th. The agency, which was banned by Wada for many years in the wake of the doping scandal in Russia, is now responsible for bringing the case against Valiyeva to a valid end in accordance with Wada rules after the Olympics.