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

[coppertop1]

Not always. If they are Americans and claim that they are passionately kissing, they can avoid punishment. Let’s see if it works for Russians…

Give it a rest with the victim complex. It's tiresome and frankly not helpful

 

[hanca]

Give it a rest with the victim complex. It's tiresome and frankly not helpful

That’s not the victim complex. That’s just reality. People can get away with things if they have the right citizenship. Sad reality, but let’s not be naive and pretend that rules apply to everyone equally.

 

[On My Own]

If intent matters, why was Jessica Calalangna banned?

Wasn't Calalang suspended by the USADA? If so, the cases are definitely not the same. There's been discussion if the RUSADA was at all culpable in the case of Valieva, for example.

 

[On My Own]

That’s not the victim complex. That’s just reality. People can get away with things if they have the right citizenship. Sad reality, but let’s not be naive and pretend that rules apply to everyone equally.

I think it's just true that Russians will have a good few words in support of Valieva when the time for the hearing finally arrives, because there are many exceptional circumstances that blew up the media coverage for this case.

1. It was the Olympics
2. Figure skating is huge in Russia (both 1 and 2 add up to much more attention)
3. Valieva is a teenager and a girl, which earns much more sympathy from the average viewership
4. Eteri Tutberidze's dominance in women's skating, aka the articles about Valieva's first senior season being compared to baseball players hitting some exceptional number of home runs in a single match
5. Russia started attacking Ukraine soon after, redoubling discussion about their abusive practices in general
6. One very important one - the medals on line are those of the USA and Canada, which is being ignored on the forum, but I imagine at least some media have that particular agenda in mind.

 

[carriecmu0503]

I think it's just true that Russians will have a good few words in support of Valieva when the time for the hearing finally arrives, because there are many exceptional circumstances that blew up the media coverage for this case.

1. It was the Olympics
2. Figure skating is huge in Russia (both 1 and 2 add up to much more attention)
3. Valieva is a teenager and a girl, which earns much more sympathy from the average viewership
4. Eteri Tutberidze's dominance in women's skating, aka the articles about Valieva's first senior season being compared to baseball players hitting some exceptional number of home runs in a single match
5. Russia started attacking Ukraine soon after, redoubling discussion about their abusive practices in general
6. One very important one - the medals on line are those of the USA and Canada, which is being ignored on the forum, but I imagine at least some media have that particular agenda in mind.

How conveniently you exclude Japan from number six :/……

 

[On My Own]

How conveniently you exclude Japan from number six :/……

How conveniently you ignore the many times I've pointed out that JOC isn't being as loud about this as Canada and especially the US.

 

[airgelaal]

That’s not the victim complex. That’s just reality. People can get away with things if they have the right citizenship. Sad reality, but let’s not be naive and pretend that rules apply to everyone equally.

Tell that to Lance Armstrong. His own country buried him, but they could have buried the case, as Russia does.

 

[Karen-W]

How conveniently you exclude Japan from number six :/……

How conveniently you ignore the many times I've pointed out that JOC isn't being as loud about this as Canada and especially the US.

I don't think the COC is being particularly loud about this situation either. They've been just as quiet, IMO, as the JOC. There are some individual Canadians who have been vocal about it, more than the Japanese, for sure, but none of them appear to have the backing of their NOCs and feds the way the US skaters affected have had the very public support of the USOPC and USFS.

 

[carriecmu0503]

How conveniently you ignore the many times I've pointed out that JOC isn't being as loud about this as Canada and especially the US.

How conveniently you ignore cultural differences between countries. Just because JOC isn’t being loud does not mean they are not as angry. A little bit of cultural competence sure goes a long way.

 

[SidelineSkater]

Not always. If they are Americans and claim that they are passionately kissing, they can avoid punishment. Let’s see if it works for Russians…

Wasn't that also the French tennis player's excuse? A stripper/hooker/lady of the evening that he kissed and that's how the cocaine got into his system?

Granted USA Track and Field has had its share of doping issues. But I'd also point to Sha'carri Richardson. She failed a drug test for using marijuana after US trials for the Olympics in 2021. Instead of sweeping it under the rug, they banned her from competing until she was clean. Fast forward a few years and she's winning world championships.

If only there was a way to compare that with Valieva's situation. Maybe someone can help me find the similarities - you know, if she had failed a drug test around the timing of her own national championships...and if her country would have done the right thing???

 

[On My Own]

How conveniently you ignore cultural differences between countries. Just because JOC isn’t being loud does not mean they are not as angry. A little bit of cultural competence sure goes a long way.

How conveniently you ignore the point of my posts. A bit of reading comprehension goes a long way.

 

[On My Own]

I don't think the COC is being particularly loud about this situation either. They've been just as quiet, IMO, as the JOC. There are some individual Canadians who have been vocal about it, more than the Japanese, for sure, but none of them appear to have the backing of their NOCs and feds the way the US skaters affected have had the very public support of the USOPC and USFS.

I think it's pretty obvious the US is pushing it the most, because they'll have the most to gain. (which, of course, is the point of my bringing it up, with Russia being able to go with "the West is doing it for their own gain" crap during the hearing because of things like these)

 

[vireo]

I think it's pretty obvious the US is pushing it the most, because they'll have the most to gain.

I think the Canadian team has the most at stake. The American and Japanese skaters will eventually get Olympic medals of some color. The Canadians have been left teetering between achieving the dream of winning an Olympic medal, or getting no medal at all.

I feel for all the clean skaters who are being harmed by this mess. I just think the position of the Canadians must be especially difficult.

 

[carriecmu0503]

How conveniently you ignore the point of my posts. A bit of reading comprehension goes a long way.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with my reading comprehension. I have a Ph.D. You?

 

[airgelaal]

Valieva seeks re-establishment of her victory at the 2021 Russian Nationals, ISU and WADA seek for Valieva being sanctioned with 2-4 years of ineligibility

Valieva seeks re-establishment of her victory at the 2021 Russian Nationals, ISU and WADA seek for Valieva being sanctioned with 2-4 years of ineligibility

Kamila Valieva seeks re-establishment of her victory at the 2021 Russian Nationals, ISU and WADA seek for Valieva being sanctioned with a period of ineligibility of 2-4 years.

fs-gossips.com

 

[Sylvia]

^^^ That article is a recap of CAS' media release today (copied out in full below).

The CAS hearing in the arbitration proceedings involving RUSADA, the ISU, WADA and Kamila Valieva will start on 26 September 2023 (Sept. 15, 2023): https://www.tas-cas.org/fileadmin/u...elease_9451_9455_9456_Pre-Hearing_Release.pdf

MEDIA RELEASE
FIGURE SKATING

THE COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT (CAS) HEARING
IN THE ARBITRATION PROCEEDINGS INVOLVING RUSADA, THE ISU,
WADA AND KAMILA VALIEVA WILL START ON 26 SEPTEMBER 2023

Lausanne, 15 September 2023 - The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) confirms the following
arrangements for the hearing in the arbitration procedures
CAS 2023/A/9451 Association Russian AntiDoping Agency (RUSADA) v. Kamila Valieva,
CAS 2023/A/9455 International Skating Union (ISU) v. Kamila Valieva, Association Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA),
and CAS 2023/A/9456 World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) v. Association Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) & Kamila
Valieva):
The hearing will take place on 26, 27 and 28 September 2023, with 29 September 2023 being a reserve
day. It will be held at the CAS Headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, although the Panel will hear some
parties, witnesses and experts via video-conference, including Ms Kamila Valieva and the representatives
of RUSADA.
The parties to the proceedings: RUSADA, the ISU, WADA and Ms Valieva (collectively, the parties),
want privacy and have not requested that a public hearing be held. Consequently, the hearing will take
place behind closed doors in accordance with the provisions of Article 57 of the Code of Sports-related
Arbitration (the “CAS Code”), and outside persons will not be authorised to attend. For that reason, on
5 September 2023, the CAS Panel denied a request filed by the 2022 United States Olympic Figure
Skating Team for an observer to be permitted to attend the hearing on their behalf.
The Panel of CAS arbitrators constituted to decide the matter is composed of:
President: Mr James Drake KC, Barrister, United Kingdom & Australia
Arbitrators: Mr Jeffrey Mishkin, Attorney-at-Law, USA
Dr Mathieu Maisonneuve, Professor of law, France
The ISU and WADA nominated Mr Jeffrey Mishkin, and Ms Valieva nominated Prof. Mathieu
Maisonneuve. RUSADA being involved as Appellant in one procedure and as Respondent in the other
two, it decided not to participate in the nomination process. The President of the Panel was appointed by
the Deputy President of the Appeals Arbitration Division in accordance with the CAS Code.

The Panel and parties have established a detailed hearing timetable. The proceedings will open on
Tuesday, 26 September 2023 with a short opening submission from each party, followed by the hearing
of fact witnesses. On Wednesday, 27 September 2023, the Panel will hear expert witnesses and on
Thursday, 28 September 2023, the Panel will hear the parties’ closing submissions and rebuttals. Should
additional time be required, the Panel and parties have reserved Friday, 29 September 2023.
Following the hearing, the Panel will deliberate and prepare the Arbitral Award containing its decision.
At this juncture, it is not possible to indicate when the final decision will be announced. The CAS Panel’s
decision will be final and binding, with the exception of the parties’ right to file an appeal to the Swiss
Federal Tribunal within 30 days on limited procedural grounds.
The hearing concerns the appeals filed individually by RUSADA, the ISU, and WADA against the
decision issued by the RUSADA Disciplinary Anti-Doping Commission (RUSADA DADC) dated
14 December 2022 (the Challenged Decision), in which the Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva
(the Athlete) was found to have committed an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) for which she bore
“no fault or negligence” and was not sanctioned with the exception of the disqualification of the results
achieved on the date of the sample collection (25 December 2021).
RUSADA seeks a ruling from CAS setting aside the Challenged Decision and finding the Athlete to have
committed an ADRV under the RUSADA Anti-Doping Rules (RUSADA ADR), and sanctioned with
“the appropriate consequences (which may include or be limited to a reprimand) in respect of such ADRV
pursuant to the RUSADA ADR”.
The ISU seeks a ruling from CAS sanctioning the Athlete with a four-year period of ineligibility or,
subsidiarily, a two-year period of ineligibility, starting from 25 December 2021, as well as the
disqualification of all results achieved by the Athlete during this period.
WADA seeks a ruling from CAS setting aside the Challenged Decision and finding the Athlete to have
committed an ADRV under art. 4.1 and/or 4.2 of the RUSADA ADR, and sanctioned with a period of
ineligibility of four years, as well as the disqualification of all competitive results obtained by the Athlete
from and including 25 December 2021.
Ms Valieva seeks a ruling from CAS that it lacks jurisdiction over WADA, ISU and RUSADA claims,
subsidiarily that no violation of the RUSADA ADR is proven and that she be re-established in the results
obtained at the 2021 Russian Figure Skating Championship. In the alternative, she seeks a ruling that she
bears no fault or negligence or, more subsidiarily, that the violation of the rules was not intentional, so
that the period of ineligibility shall be at most two years and that no results shall be disqualified.
In accordance with Article R52(5) of the CAS Code, the three appeals were consolidated and a common
timetable was established for the filing of the parties’ written submissions. The exchange of written
submissions, which was lengthened by extensions of time granted with the mutual agreement of the
parties, has concluded.

 

[LeafOnTheWind]

Well time to start preparing my belief that justice will not be upheld and they will continue making a shitshow of the Olympics and athlete eligibility. I've been saying for years that figure skating deserves to get kicked out of the Olympics for cheating and manipulation. But then we also would have to admit that the Olympics deserve to get kicked out of the Olympics.

 

[Sylvia]

Vincent Zhou's statetment via Global Athlete today: https://twitter.com/GlobalAthleteHQ/status/1706262286447370472

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706262291421818942

"The revered elitism of the Olympics is dependent upon the principles of clean sport & fair competition. Yet, governing bodies ... continuously act against their supposed missions & fail to act on behalf of the people for whom they exist to serve: the athletes"
@govincentzhou 3/3

ETA that I just saw that @Firedancer posted this earlier in another GSD thread.

 

[SkateFanBerlin]

changed my mind

 

[caseyedwards]

Vincent Zhou's statetment via Global Athlete today: https://twitter.com/GlobalAthleteHQ/status/1706262286447370472

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706262291421818942

ETA that I just saw that @Firedancer posted this earlier in another GSD thread.

What he says is false. Russia has been excluded from multiple Olympic games now. And where is his proof of Russian skaters doping

 

[Karen-W]

What he says is false. Russia has been excluded from multiple Olympic games now. And where is his proof of Russian skaters doping

No, the Russian flag and national anthem have been excluded, but Russia has sent LARGE delegations to every single Olympics, Winter & Summer both, since the Sochi doping scandal broke. Get your facts straight, you troglodyte.

 

[caseyedwards]

No, the Russian flag and national anthem have been excluded, but Russia has sent LARGE delegations to every single Olympics, Winter & Summer both, since the Sochi doping scandal broke. Get your facts straight, you troglodyte.

He says “the Russian team” has not been banned. The Russian team most certainly has been banned. He wants all Russian citizens banned. That’s totally different thing.

 

[On My Own]

I wish it were a collective delusion that the team called "Olympic Athletes of Russia" had competed. But it isn't.

 

[coppertop1]

Russians need to learn that deflecting, and spinning just makes them look more guilty. We all know what happened. We saw it. Stop telling us it didn't

 

[Wyliefan]

Russians need to learn that deflecting, and spinning just makes them look more guilty. We all know what happened. We saw it. Stop telling us it didn't

First they'd have to care.

 

[ChelleC]

What he says is false. Russia has been excluded from multiple Olympic games now. And where is his proof of Russian skaters doping

Kamila Valieva's positive test result is proof enough. And if you think she's the only one who was doped, well then you're even more stupid than I thought.

 

[caseyedwards]

I wish it were a collective delusion that the team called "Olympic Athletes of Russia" had competed. But it isn't.

That was not the Russian team. That was done by a whole different process

Kamila Valieva's positive test result is proof enough. And if you think she's the only one who was doped, well then you're even more stupid than I thought.

You have proof?

 

[Sylvia]

Rob Koehler, Director General of Global Athlete, replied to Beverley Smith's tweet/X post with the link to Vincent's statement that's been published on their website:

Statement from United States of America Olympic Figure Skater Vincent Zhou — Global Athlete

Athlete Statement - Vincent Zhou: It has been 595 days since my teammates and I earned medals at the Olympics. We still have not received them.

www.globalathlete.org

ETA link to Reuters' article:

US figure skater Zhou slams anti-doping system's failures ahead of Valieva hearing

The global anti-doping system is "failing athletes", American figure skater Vincent Zhou said on Monday ahead of Russian Kamila Valieva's doping case, which will be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) from Tuesday to Friday.

www.reuters.com

"Whenever finally held, the awards ceremony for the Beijing 2022 Figure Skating Team Event will be a symbol of the gross failures of the IOC, CAS, RUSADA (Russian Anti-Doping Agency), and other global sporting administrators.
"Justice delayed is justice denied, and my team mates and I will never get back the chance to stand before the world to celebrate a lifetime's worth of hard work culminating in a career-defining achievement."
Reuters has contacted the IOC, CAS and RUSADA for comment.

And from BBC Sport:

Kamila Valieva: American skater Vincent Zhou criticises anti-doping system before Russian's hearing

American figure skater Vincent Zhou says the global anti-doping system is "failing athletes" before Russian Kamila Valieva's doping case hearing begins on Tuesday.

www.bbc.com

 

[On My Own]

That was not the Russian team. That was done by a whole different process

It was the Russian team, quite literally it says so in their name.

You have proof?

Wikipedia too hard to find for you, or have you finally moved to Russia?

 

[Sylvia]

And, right on cue! :

Machine translated via RIA Novosti today:

“Bastard. Zhou is a good skater, it’s just that they are all programmed that the Russians are enemies, so they will say anything,” said Zhulin.

“How does he know? Was he really here, did he live here? What is he saying? He must be held accountable for these words! He must be sued,” [Tatiana] Tarasova said.