Russian Figure Skater tests positive for drugs - delays ceremony for team medals

[Bulletsdad]

KV is a minor age athlete according to the ioc rules she cannot be treated as an adult age athlete who tested positive for a banned substance. She is not subjected to the same IOC penalties an adult age athlete would be like a two-year suspension from competitions. Now if it turns out this was not a one-time thing with her like if they take a hair sample from her and find out it happened before then I think maybe the ioc should think about treating Kamila as an adult athlete since she's going to be 16 very soon. I don't know if there's wiggle room with their rules and if they're so upset with the Russian Federation if the ioc would come back in a few months and try to suspend KV for 2 or 4 years as an adult athlete. I am sad that this phenom has to pay the price due to the mistakes of her older countrymen.

I think Russian parents and all parents need to get more involved in there figure skating children's lives and not leave everything to coaches and teams.

Thsvfifteen-year-old athlete deserves to have legal representation since she has been convicted everywhere in the world already.
I think that's why so many people are outraged by the CAS ruling. It was also tough knowing under such stress this child was not able to have her parents with her I think that was ridiculous.

I do wish the Russian Federation had withdrawn KV from the Olympics a few days ago and thrown her on the mercy of the ioc. That would have been a better look and she never would have gotten into severe trouble because their rules state that as a minor athlete she pretty much walks free. But if we expect the Russian Sports leaders to make good decisions I don't think any of us expect that and sending Anna and Sasha to Beijing so early when they weren't going to be in the team event was ridiculous now they're burnt out and not practicing well. TT usually goes to major competitions two days early Sasha and Anna have been there like 11 days already without competing. I don't think Kamila is a doper but if the B sample confirms the positive doping tests or a hair sample confirms a positive doping test then at the very least she was doped by somebody. That person or people need to be stopped and face legal issues. Also Kamila may not understand the difference between testing positive and being an outright doper. She is very lucky she's not yet 16 or she would be facing at least a two-year suspension and the loss of her metal or any metal she wins but as a minor athlete she's not supposed to be subjected to those penalties.
Before I knew the rules about how the ioc treats minor aged athletes I thought Valley AVA might get anywhere from a nine-month suspension to a two-year suspension. The shorter suspension would not have ruined her career and would have put some teeth and some discipline about testing positive for a banned substance even if you didn't know you were taking it or what you were taking. Right now this fifteen-year-old girl is benefiting from the ioc rules for minor age athletes there's no question about it.

It's an unfortunate situation. There will be investigations and hopefully they will find out how this substance got in this girls system and who played a role in getting it there. It's unbelievable to think that they would put a banned substance an athlete who so gifted and so much better than the field.

I also find it interesting that Valievas drug tests at Europeans and the Olympics have come back clean. Maybe someone in the Russian Federation thought they could help her at Nationals but only Nationals.

I would not be surprised if all the Eteri skaters sport the Grace Jones look, as soon as they can get a pair of clippers.

 

[muffinplus]

Does Fedex have a Russian division???

Believe it or not FedEx in Canada refused to deliver credit cards to my address because they thought it was fraudulent .. they sent them back to the credit card company and basically ignored all my phone calls. FedEx sucks

 

[SkateG8]

So there will be no ceremony if she medals? Am I understanding this clearly? How is this fair to the other skaters? The other skaters should have the right to have a medal ceremony.

So because one girl doped the others can't have their medal ceremony that is so wrong. If she isn't able to stand on a podium she shouldn't be competing. What a stupid ruling.

 

[Stefanie]

So there will be no ceremony if she medals? Am I understanding this clearly? How is this fair to the other skaters? The other skaters should have the right to have a medal ceremony.

So because one girl doped the others can't have their medal ceremony that is so wrong. If she isn't able to stand on a podium she shouldn't be competing. What a stupid ruling.

ITA. I cannot wrap my head around this.

 

[PRlady]

I view the IOC/ISU's message as signaling that they believe Valieva will be DQ'ed eventually. Given that, I think the skaters should compete.

If the IOC/ISU had not announced 25 athletes in the free + no medal ceremony if it includes Valieva, I'd be right there with you. Except I think it should be done at a federation level, rather than the skaters, i.e., if USA, JPN, CAN, and KOR together made a decision to withdraw all of their skaters. It's not right to stick this on the skaters. Someone like Karen Chen has very little to lose (second Olympics, skating poorly, won a medal in the team event, no real medal shot unless all of the Russians and probably some others get DQ'ed), while others like Mariah Bell have everything to lose.

Leaving aside how hard you are on Karen (who skated a decent LP in the TE and has even odds of finishing ahead of Mariah in the IE) I see your point. I did mean the federations, not the skaters themselves. I would have included the big Euro countries like UK, Germany, Italy and France but not one of them has a lady skater competitive enough for top ten. Only little Belgium and Poland do and the latter has other considerations, plus Kurakova is Russian herself.

But as much as my mind always runs to political action, I guess I would feel awful for those like Mariah for whom this is likely to be their only Olympics. I'm old enough to remember 1980 and 1984....

 

[flyingsit]

So there will be no ceremony if she medals? Am I understanding this clearly? How is this fair to the other skaters? The other skaters should have the right to have a medal ceremony.

So because one girl doped the others can't have their medal ceremony that is so wrong. If she isn't able to stand on a podium she shouldn't be competing. What a stupid ruling.

After she is eventually DQ'd, the ISU should have an actual medal ceremony somewhere, and charge Russia for the expenses of flying in the entire teams of the countries represented, not just the individual athletes. Because you know the other skaters would have been at the Beijing ceremonies, not to mention coaches, team leaders, etc. Give them ALL that moment.

 

[PRlady]

After she is eventually DQ'd, the ISU should have an actual medal ceremony somewhere, and charge Russia for the expenses of flying in the entire teams of the countries represented, not just the individual athletes. Because you know the other skaters would have been at the Beijing ceremonies, not to mention coaches, team leaders, etc. Give them ALL that moment.

My guess is that they will do it at Worlds (not this year) when most of the people would be there anyway. A few retired skaters like H/D should have their way paid to attend.

 

[kates8]

So in the ISU 2016 Yelin Kim ruling they place the blame squarely on a 13 year old shoulders for her violation but now they say KV's age protects her!!??
"The Panel is nevertheless of the view that, in order for an athlete to be bound to anti-doping rules, the issue of age is in principle of no relevance. Accordingly, the fact that the Alleged Offender was very young at the time of the anti-doping control (13 years old) is in this respect irrelevant. If a young athlete enrolls to compete in organized sport she must do it in accordance with the rules of the game, including the rules whose violation entails disciplinary consequences. This is especially appropriate in figure skating, where athletes tend to emerge onto the international scene at ever younger ages. After all, subjection to rules and to sanctions is not unknown to minors. For instance, when minors are in school, they must comply with school rules and be prepared to undergo disciplinary consequences – even harsh ones, such as the expulsion from the school or the repetition of the same school year – if they don’t. If a young athlete is deemed by his parents mature enough to participate in an international event, she must be deemed mature enough to understand the applicable anti-doping rules. In addition, the Panel remarks that anti-doping rules are aimed at protecting the vested interest of all participants in a fair competition. The principle of a level playing field is a cornerstone of sports law in general and of anti-doping law in particular. This principle notably aims at protecting the 4 4 Athletes’ fundamental right to participate in doping-free sport and thus promote health, fairness and equality for Athletes. In order to protect this fundamental right, it is indispensable that all athletes be subjected to the same rules, particularly those aiming at protecting equality of arms and, thus, at avoiding that some competitors may benefit from an unfair advantage over other competitors. The qualification of an athlete as a minor is, therefore, not a circumstance that could exempt him from being submitted to the anti-doping regulations in the same way as all the other participants to the competitions. A different approach would lead to intolerable consequences. One of the consequences would be that while some of the participants in a competition (i.e. those who have attained the majority) would be subjected to a certain set of rules, minors would have to obey to less stringent rules or to no rules at all. This would result, in particular, in young athletes being allowed to use doping substances and doping methods, as they could rely on a substantial immunity from the imposition of sanctions. This is incompatible with the idea of a level playing field and would be contrary to the protection of the health of minors, as the awareness of impunity would have the inevitable consequence of encouraging the use of doping. All of this cannot be accepted."

 

[Cachoo]

I was so looking forward to the ladies event (especially the Russians) and now I am so over the Russians after this. I don't blame the girls. I know our military branches use the hair follicle test because it is harder to hide whatever you are trying to hide. Maybe we need to move in this direction because what we are doing now isn't working. I'm sure I will calm down but at the moment I see Eteri as Medusa with snakes coming out of her head. Kamila didn't deserve what the adults around her did to her. Despicable.

 

[Moto Guzzi]

I will not watch ladies FS at this Olympics, and possibly never again if this stands.

I'll watch but I'll change channels when any of Cheateri Tutberidze's students are skating.

 

[alexikeguchi]

I've made no secret that Kamila is my favorite female skater, not just Russian, but I agree with almost everything posted. CAS made a pathetic ruling (and I think they are the ones responsible for allowing Russia to compete for the last four years as "ROC" when the IOC wanted to ban them entirely), but given what the IOC and ISU had to work with it is 100% right not to hold a victory or medal ceremony for the women. It's not as if we would be seeing the actual medalists, and who really wants to see any Eteri skater rewarded when they probably committed the same offenses and didn't get caught. It sucks for the 4th (and possibly 5th and 6th) place finisher and the team event medalists, but maybe they will end up getting a higher medal or a medal they weren't expecting. I would LOL joyfully at hearing Karen Chen and Vincent Zhou announced as Olympic gold medalists after all the trash talk they had to endure. In addition, I hope the ISU at the very first opportunity:

1) raises the age limit to 17/18.
2) devalues quads; why should a skater get 100% more points for 30% more rotation?
3) drops any consideration (if there was any) of allowing women to do quads in the SP
4) limits quads in Women to either one or at most a second different quad

If technology and honest training improve to the point where adult women from multiple countries can reliably complete quads, then they could reconsider 3 and 4.

 

[allezfred]

Now the IOC and ISU say that doping and abusing kids is fine.

Keep seeing this here and on social media. The IOC and the ISU opposed the ruling, but they cannot go against a legal ruling from CAS that says Valieva can skate.

I would have included the big Euro countries like UK, Germany, Italy and France but not one of them has a lady skater competitive enough for top ten.

And the fact that neither Italy nor France qualified a women to compete in the individual event.

Only little Belgium

I don't think I have heard "little Belgium" used since the 1920s.

 

[Spiralgraph]

I'm disgusted and disheartened by all this. I've been a fan of figure skating since I was 11 and I've read about a lot of scandals and disreputable actions in this sport but this might be the worst. I too will not watch the three female Russian skaters and I may wait until the event is concluded before I watch anybody. I don't blame Kamila but the grown ups around her. Ugh I had mixed emotions about raising the age to 17/18 to compete at the Olympics or Worlds now I'm all for it.

 

[screech]

Kaitlyn Weaver tweeted

"Irreparable harm" ... can someone expand on what that means? To me, irreparable harm sounds like a child taking a heart medication meant for 65+. How about the irreparable harm of the FUTURE OF OLY Sport? This is bogus. This is not how we move forward in a good way. Nope.

 

[Seerek]

A weird question.

Would a judge in the women's event be reprimanded/suspended if they applied all -5s GOEs and 0s in components as their form of "protest" against this decision or is that against Olympic Charter rules for officials?

 

[skatingguy]

A weird question.

Would a judge in the women's event be reprimanded/suspended if they applied all -5s GOEs and 0s in components as their form of "protest" against this decision or is that against Olympic Charter rules for officials?

Yes - that would be a violation of their oath as a judge.

 

[skategal]

Kaitlyn Weaver tweeted

I was just coming to ask the same question.

What does irreparable harm even mean?!?!

How can someone be irreparably harmed by not competing in the Olympics?

ROC must have put on quite the show in that hearing.

 

[Rafter]

So there will be no ceremony if she medals? Am I understanding this clearly? How is this fair to the other skaters? The other skaters should have the right to have a medal ceremony.

So because one girl doped the others can't have their medal ceremony that is so wrong. If she isn't able to stand on a podium she shouldn't be competing. What a stupid ruling.

Very probable that the IOC figures it will be an all-Eteri podium and that all of her girls are doping so might as well “punish“ them all by having no ceremony and not awarding medals.

I wonder what the ISU thinks of this. They usually pander to the Russians.

 

[screech]

How can someone be irreparably harmed by not competing in the Olympics?

And even still, she HAS competed in the Olympics, so she can't be irreparably harmed by not being able to do so. What about those skaters who will be irreparably harmed by being unable to have a complete Olympics experience by not being able to have the flower and medal ceremonies? By not being able to skate in the last flight at an Olympics? By not being able to compete (Liza) because the person caught with a banned substance got to compete instead?

Even aside from how this is affecting Kamila, I REALLY hope that Eteri et all are given a lengthy suspension or ban.
And if it's allowed after CAS decision, I hope the ISU considers not permitting Kamila to compete at Worlds.

 

[jeffisjeff]

Very probable that the IOC figures it will be an all-Eteri podium and that all of her girls are doping so might as well “punish“ them all.

Except it won't be a punishment. They'll just go back home and hold their own medal ceremony.

 

[Scott512]

I would not be surprised if all the Eteri skaters sport the Grace Jones look, as soon as they can get a pair of clippers.

I assume and presume that means Grace Jones had very short hair. No need to worry. Anna and sasha are never cutting their hair.

 

[bladesofgorey]

Except it won't be a punishment. They'll just go back home and hold their own medal ceremony.

Exactly this. It doesn't matter in Russia, they'll be given a parade and magazine covers and all sorts of promotional opportunities as though this never happened and treated like heroes who were able to defeat the enemy trying to bring them down and Eteri as a divine leader etc.

 

[Rafter]

I assume and presume that means Grace Jones had very short hair. No need to worry. Anna and sasha are never cutting their hair.

Trusova‘s hair looks ridiculous. And unhealthy.

 

[bladesofgorey]

Trusova‘s hair looks ridiculous. And unhealthy.

Her hair looks fine and she rocks it.

 

[Rafter]

Except it won't be a punishment. They'll just go back home and hold their own medal ceremony.

What, with fake medals?

 

[VGThuy]

What, with fake medals?

Keeper of Plushenko’s Platinum Medal.

 

[Rafter]

Her hair looks fine and she rocks it.

We’ll have to agree to disagree. IMO it looks tacky.

 

[Frau Muller]

Might Kamila now wish to withdraw - surely she doesn’t want to deprive the other ladies medallists of their ceremony? …

Upon further thought - since waking up to the news - this is my wish too. Also, Eteri should isolate in her hotel room. The last thing that we need is to see her blonde curly locks by the boards (the Eteri Cam)…or the gang, including Creepy Doctor.

I want the Women’s event to happen with 29 skaters. I also want T/M to compete in Pairs without the Sambo70 gang around.

 

[kates8]

What would have happened if Kamila were a few months older and 16 years old?

 

[Karen-W]

Well, check Gubanova's Instastory - Good luck to all the skaters EXCEPT icons for pills, injections, DNA, test tube

I don't see anything on Gubanova's IG - posts or stories - about this. Link?

And if it's allowed after CAS decision, I hope the ISU considers not permitting Kamila to compete at Worlds.

I don't think the ISU can ban her from competing at Worlds unless the full case is resolved by then and I hardly doubt it will be taken care of in the next 4 weeks. But, they might be ballsy enough to follow the IOC'S example and refuse to hold any medals (small or event) ceremonies where she wins one until the matter is fully resolved.