Olympia 2022: Kamila Valieva is allowed to start in the individual figure skating competition – the CAS judgment has been made

The CAS stated in its judgment that Valieva was considered to be in need of special protection. The anti-doping rules of RUSADA and the WADA Code are also not sufficient for provisional suspensions for underage athletes.

CAS Director General Matthieu Reeb also stressed the “irreparable damage” that exclusion from the Winter Games would have caused. The delay in evaluating the sample also deprived Valieva of the opportunity “to meet certain legal requirements”. Reeb said, “We all wouldn’t be here if it had lasted a week or 10 days, as usual.”

For now, the decision, made by the CAS ad hoc chamber at the Chinese capital’s Continental Grand Hotel, only means that Valieva will be allowed to compete in the Winter Games’ individual competition. It starts on Tuesday at the Capital Indoor Stadium with the short program, Valieva is scheduled to hit the ice at 21:52 local time (14:52 CET).

Valieva can present her freestyle routine for Maurice Ravel’s Bolero with the unique quadruple jumps on Thursday.

Olympia: Valieva under enormous pressure

But can she withstand the pressure? After all, the teenager has long been the focus of a political issue, for many observers the victim of an incorrigible system and a victim of a criminal environment. Not a stone cold scammer. Nevertheless, she will have to answer for the banned substance trimetazidine. Only after the return from China will it be about the Russian team gold, to which Valieva contributed a large part.

“It’s a dilemma we’re all in,” said IOC spokesman Mark Adams on Monday.

CAS judges Fabio Iudica (Italy), Jeffrey Benz (USA) and Vesna Bergant (Slovenia) ruled only on Valieva’s continued participation in the Beijing Games. The video hearing lasted five and a half hours and ended at 2:10 a.m. in Beijing. It was initially unclear whether Valieva spoke out herself or was represented. The IOC, WADA, ISU, the Russian Olympic Committee ROC and RUSADA spoke.

Valieva case: Witt does not see the athlete as guilty

Witt asks, “Wouldn’t it be right to let a child mature?” Instead of burning it up. Her trainer Eteri Tutberidze, who is notorious for her overly harsh methods, has to put up with this accusation. The list of young athletes who, driven by Tutberidze, rose to the top of the world and disappeared with mental or physical damage is long.

The IOC has already assured that they want to illuminate Valieva’s environment. “We have the Entourage Commission,” spokesman Mark Adams said, “and we want WADA to investigate the team in this case.” This team also includes Filipp Schwezki, a doctor with a relevant doping past. Witt is convinced: “Valieva is not to blame.”

Excerpt of the CAS ruling in the Kamila Valieva case:

Based on the very limited facts of this case and after considering the relevant legal position, CAS has determined that a Provisional Suspension should not be imposed on the Athlete in the following exceptional circumstances:

a) The Athlete is a “Protected Person” under the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC);

b) The anti-doping rules of RUSADA (Russian Anti-Doping Agency; ed.) and WADC say nothing in relation to a provisional suspension of a protected person, whereas these rules have specific provisions for other standards of proof and for lesser sanctions included in the case of protected persons;

c) The Panel considered the basic principles of fairness, proportionality, irreparable harm and relative balance of interests between the applicants and the Athlete who did not test positive during the Beijing Olympics and is still the subject of a disciplinary proceeding subsequent to that taken in December 2021 positive anti-doping test; in particular, the Panel considered that, in these circumstances, irreparable harm would be caused to the Athlete should she be denied participation;

d) The CAS Panel also emphasized that it had serious problems with the timely notification of the results of the Athlete’s anti-doping test conducted in December 2021, as this affected the Athlete’s ability to comply with certain legal requirements in her favour, whereby at the same time this late notification during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics was not their fault.

The Valieva case – summarized:

What happened?

Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, who is suspected of doping, can take part in the individual competition at the Beijing Winter Games from Tuesday. The ad hoc chamber of the sports arbitration court CAS on Monday rejected the objection of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the World Skating Federation ISU against the lifting of the suspension of the 15-year-old by the Russian anti-doping agency RUSADA back.

How does the CAS justify its judgement?

The CAS stated that Valiyeva was considered particularly vulnerable because of her age. The anti-doping rules of RUSADA and the WADA Code are also not sufficient for provisional suspensions for underage athletes. Furthermore, CAS Director General Matthieu Reeb emphasized the “irreparable damage” to which Valieva’s exclusion from the Winter Games would have resulted. Also, it was “not the athlete’s fault that the notification reached her during the Olympics,” Reeb said.

Does that clear everything up?

By far not. The CAS alone decided whether the child star was allowed on the ice in the individual competition. Only after the games will Valieva have to answer for the fact that the banned substance trimetazidine was found in her body. If the B sample is also positive, it could be blocked. Then their results since the sampling on December 25th would also be deleted retrospectively, i.e. the Russian championship title, European Championship gold – and every result at the current Winter Games. In the previous week, the Russian athletes around Valieva already took first place in the team. Because of the unclear legal situation, the IOC said on Monday that it would not hold a medal ceremony in Beijing in which Valieva would be involved. Upon completion of the case, this would be “worthy” made up for.

What does the case mean for the controversial sporting nation of Russia?

Many major issues remain. It will be about the extent to which the teenager Valieva is a victim of an unteachable system or a criminal environment. This could also have consequences for the apparently incorrigible sports nation Russia. The two-year ban on major events expires in mid-December. The question arises as to whether the giant empire was sufficiently sanctioned by CAS, WADA or the IOC due to its past misconduct.

What does the case mean for the anti-doping fight?

In any case, the reputation of the supervisory authorities is further damaged. ARD specialist journalist Hajo Seppelt spoke of a “resounding slap in the face for the anti-doping system”. It will have to be clarified why the evaluation of the sample took so long. Nobody wants to take responsibility: According to WADA, RUSADA did not mark the sample as a priority when it was sent to the control laboratory in Stockholm, and RUSADA in turn justified the late evaluation with corona cases in the Stockholm laboratory. This delay deprived Valieva of the opportunity “to meet certain legal requirements,” the CAS statement said. Director General Reeb said, “We all wouldn’t be here if it had taken a week or 10 days, as usual.”

How does the sports world react to the CAS ruling?

Mixed as expected. The Russian Olympic Committee ROC spoke of the “best news of the day”. Sarah Hirshland, President of the US NOC, said she was “disappointed with the message emanating from this decision”. The figure skaters from the USA took second place behind the Russians in the team competition. In general, there is a lot of approval for Valieva to start – with the addition that the doping case is far from settled.