Kamila Valieva was disqualified for 4 years. She is prohibited from training, performing in shows and tournaments.
The epic around the doping scandal involving Kamila Valieva seems to have come to an end. The athlete was suspended from competition for four years.
Starting December 25, 2021, Kamila Valieva will undergo a four-year period of ineligibility. This period began after the figure skater failed a doping control, passing a sample that was positive for trimetazidine during the Russian Championships in St. Petersburg.
CAS has no jurisdiction over the distribution of medals at the Olympic Games, but it is assumed that the ISU will uphold the decision of the international court, which will lead to the deprivation of the Russian figure skaters of the Olympic gold medal in the team event at the Olympic Games 2022. Thus, this medal will be given to the US team, silver will go to the Japanese team, and bronze will go to the Canadians.
The formal meeting of the ISU board, which will decide on the results of the Olympic team tournament, is scheduled for February 7 – exactly two years after the competition. There is some legal uncertainty, as the rules do not clearly describe the situation. The Russian side will probably make attempts to appeal, but the chances of success are extremely slim.
CAS issued a harsh decision as the court concluded that Kamila Valieva could not prove that she had taken the banned drug unknowingly. Even her protected person status did not help her.
The Court of Sport notes that Valieva did not deny her responsibility, agreeing that the presence of trimetazidine in her doping sample was a violation under paragraph 4.1 of the Russian anti-doping rules.
It is also noted that the figure skater was unable to confirm that the anti-doping rule violation was inadvertent. She was given the same status as adult athletes, resulting in a strict four-year period of ineligibility.
The official details of the decision have not yet been revealed as CAS has not published the motivation. Perhaps the media can get more information about the investigation. For example, Sovetsky Sport claims that Valieva’s lawyers based their line of defense on the fact that she unknowingly received the banned drug through a dessert prepared by her grandfather. However, the court has not been convinced of the veracity of this version, and the accuracy of this information is still difficult to assess.
The possibility of Kamila Valieva’s return to competition will come on December 25, 2025. Two months before that date, starting on October 25, she will have a legal opportunity to resume training. Whether to do so, however, is left to the discretion of Kamila herself.
For the next two years, Valieva will not be able to officially train or participate in state-funded shows. By the time the disqualification period ends, the athlete will be 19 years old. In theory, she has the opportunity to train and compete at the 2026 Olympics, provided that Russian figure skaters are allowed to participate.
One of the key questions is whether action will be taken against members of the figure skater’s entourage for doping violations.
Following the decision in the Valieva case, WADA called on states to introduce laws criminalizing the involvement of minors in doping. However, the existence of additional investigations remains unknown at this time. Much depends on the determination of WADA and ISU. However, they will now have to prove that the doping was provided to Kamila by coaches and doctors, which is virtually impossible.
In addition to winning the Olympic team event, Valieva was stripped of the following honors:
Redistribution of medals from December 2021:
Russian Championships 2022, was:Kamila Valiyeva
Alexandra Trusova
Anna Scherbakova
Russian Championship 2022, became:Alexandra Trusova
Anna Scherbakova
Adelia Petrosyan
European Championships 2022, was:Kamila Valieva
Anna Scherbakova
Alexandra Trusova
European Championships 2022, became:Anna Scherbakova
Alexandra Trusova
Luna Hendricks
Grand Prix of Russia “Golden Horse of Moscow 2022”, was:Kamila Valieva
Sofya Akatieva
Anastasia Zinina
Grand Prix of Russia “Golden Horse of Moscow 2022”, became:Sofya Akatieva
Anastasia Zinina
Alina Gorbacheva
Grand Prix of Russia “Idel 2022”, was:Kamila Valieva
Veronika Yametova
Kseniya Sinitsina
Grand Prix of Russia “Idel 2022”, was:Veronika Yametova
Kseniya Sinitsina
Kseniya Gushchina
Russian Jumping Championships 2022, was:Kamila Valieva
Sofya Muravyeva
Sofya Akatieva
Russian Jumping Championships 2022, became:Sofya Muravyeva
Sofya Akatieva
Alisa Dvoneglazova
Russian Championship 2023, was:Sofya Akatieva
Kamila Valieva
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
Russian Championships 2023, became:Sofya Akatieva
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
Sofia Muravyeva
Russian Grand Prix Final (Russian Cup Final) 2023, was:Adelia Petrosyan
Kamila Valieva
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
Russian Grand Prix Final (Russian Cup Final) 2023, became:Adelia Petrosyan
Elizaveta Tuktamysheva
Sofya Akatieva
Grand Prix of Russia “Golden Horse of Moscow 2023”, was:Kamila Valieva
Veronika Yametova
Sofya Muravyeva
Grand Prix of Russia “Golden Horse of Moscow 2023”, was:Veronika Yametova
Sofya Muravyeva
Ksenia Sinitsina
Russian Championship 2024, was:Adelia Petrosyan
Sofya Muravyeva
Kamila Valieva
Russian Championship 2024, became:Adelia Petrosyan
Sofya Muravyeva
Kseniya Sinitsina
Awards remaining in Kamila Valieva’s possession:
Adults:ISU Grand Prix “Skate Canada” 2021
ISU Grand Prix “Rostelecom Cup” 2021
Finlandia Trophy Challenger 2021
Russian Championship 2021
Russian Cup Final 2021
Channel One Cup 2021
Junior:World Junior Championships 2020
ISU Junior Grand Prix Final 2019/20
ISU Junior Grand Prix 2020
ISU Junior Grand Prix 2020
Russian Junior Championship 2020
2nd stage of the Russian Cup 2020
5th stage of the Russian Cup 2020
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