Kamila Valieva, a 15-year-old Russian figure skater, has been authorized to compete in the free skating event on Thursday despite reports that she failed a drug test.
With a score of 82.16, Valieva finished ahead of fellow Russian Anna Shcherbakova, who scored 80.20, and Japan's Kaori Sakamoto, who scored 79.87, in third place.
Kamila Valieva's Doping Test Sample Contained 3 Drugs
This happened despite Valieva's tears towards the end of her performance due to an obvious error in one of her leaps. She and another 24 competitors have qualified for the free skating competition, which will take place on Thursday. On Monday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) upheld Valieva's verdict, which was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
On Christmas Day, a sample from the 15-year-old was obtained, and it came back positive for trimetazidine, a cardiac medicine, on February 8th. According to Kamila Valieva's legal team, the positive drug test might have been caused by a tainted glass of water that had remnants of her grandfather's heart medicine in it, as per Sky News.
Kamila Valieva's sample was discovered to include traces of two other cardiac drugs that are not on the forbidden list: hypoxen and L-Carnitine, according to the New York Times story, in addition to testing positive for the banned angina drug trimetazidine.
The benefits of such a mixture, according to Travis Tygart, Chief Executive Officer of the United States Anti-Doping Agency, appear to be geared at enhancing endurance, minimizing tiredness, and improving oxygen efficiency.
On her doping control form, Valieva is said to have identified the two more substances. At her national championships on December 25, the girl tested positive for HIV, but the results were not released until February 8 after she had already competed as a team at the Beijing Games in the team event.
A suspension might cause the teen ice skater "irreparable injury" in the long term, according to the CAS panel, which cited the delay as one of the reasons for the decision. WADA is said to be privately disputing such a reading of their rules.
With an impassioned performance that left her ahead in the race for a gold medal, which is unlikely to be granted at this Games, Valieva brushed past her Olympic doping disgrace to dominate the women's category on Tuesday.
Valieva has contended that her positive drug test was caused by a mix-up with her grandfather's heart medicine, according to an official with the International Olympic Committee. For the hearing, Valieva's grandpa gave video evidence in which it is alleged that he explained that he took trimetazidine regularly when he had attacks, Daily Mail reported.
Athletes Question Kamila Valieva's Doping Case
Athletes all around the world are protesting the growing controversy surrounding Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, who is being investigated for allegedly using a prohibited cardiac medicine. Because of Valieva's age and Russia's doping history, experts feel that athletes' complaints about a double standard have weight and should be addressed, given the skater's age and Russia's doping history.
Other Olympians and Olympic aspirants disagreed with the panel's judgment and reasons, including one who made news last summer when she was forced to withdraw from the Tokyo Games due to a prohibited drug. The judgment on Valieva was questioned by track and field sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson, who was not permitted to compete in the previous Summer Games after testing positive for marijuana following a qualifying match.
Even though marijuana is legal in her home state of Oregon, Richardson confessed to taking it to cope with her mother's death. As a result of prior doping violations, Russian competitors are now prohibited from competing in the Winter Olympics under their own country's flag and can only compete under the name "Russian Olympic Committee."
Adam Rippon, a former figure skater in the United States, also questioned the panel's rationale that Valieva's suspension would cause her irreversible injury. Mariah Bell, an American figure skater competing against Valieva, is currently under Rippon's tutelage. After the short program, Bell came in 11th place, ABC News reported.
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