The 'Kamila Valieva case' gets even more muddy

Kamila Valieva, last February, at the Beijing Games. Bernat Armangue (AP)

At the beginning of last November, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced to the world that since the Russian agency (Rusada) had not yet concluded the doping process of its star skater Kamila Valieva, 16, it should be the Arbitral Tribunal of Sport (TAS), the body that sanctioned the athlete from Kazan with four years for her positive test for trimetazidine on December 25, 2021. At the same time, and indifferent to the world reaction, Kamila Valieva continued skating and competing, although only in Russia, since after the invasion of Ukraine Russian and Belarusian skaters are not admitted to international competitions, and Rusada continued to process his disciplinary file.

Two months later, Rusada has concluded the trial and issued a sentence: the last wonder of world skating had, in effect,

WADA has once again communicated to the world its thoughts and actions on the

announcing that it takes note of the Russian acquittal and that it hopes, before taking any steps, to have in its possession the full motivation of the Rusada court to see if it is in accordance with the provisions of the World Anti-Doping Code.

It is not yet known, therefore, if Valieva alleged that she took her grandfather's heart medication without her realizing it, as she claimed during her stormy trial at the Beijing Games.

The world agency warns, however, that, knowing all the elements of the case as it knows, a Russian malpractice would not surprise it and that it will not hesitate to appeal the decision to the TAS.

Although AMA does not make it explicit in its brief statement, the Russian sentence paralyzes the first, and unusual, appeal of AMA for the TAS to already sanction the skater called to be the queen of the Beijing Games.

But the paralysis could only be momentary.

After a few weeks, surely, the AMA will announce a new appeal for understanding that what Rusada says that there was neither fault nor negligence is not very justified.

Even before the Beijing Winter Games began last February, Valieva was already considered their queen.

No one could rival the Russian skater, 15 years old at the time, who combined grace, strength and charm in her petite figure, and pirouettes and four-turn jumps in the air that very few could repeat like her.

And she started out as the queen and led her Russia to victory over the United States in the team competition.

That same day, February 7, however, the suspension of the medal ceremony was announced, and a few hours later the reason was announced: Valieva had tested positive during the 2021 Christmas Day Russian Championships in San Petersburg.

The result was only known six weeks later due to various problems in the Stockholm laboratory, which analyzed her urine.

Immediately,

The United States demanded that Russia be stripped of its gold in the team competition and that it be given to their skaters.

As the result was not yet final, the skater was able to participate in the individual competition.

She was no longer the queen but the villain, a 15-year-old girl, and stifled by the pressure she made numerous mistakes.

She was fourth.

Kamila Valieva performed a version of Jenna Ortega's viral Wednesday Addams dance on ice.

More details here: https://t.co/HynlWW4bE0 pic.twitter.com/4dGKFnWwfQ

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 29, 2022

On December 25, Valieva, who will turn 17 on April 26, competed at the Russian national championships.

She came second, but after the test everyone was talking only about her, her black dress, her gothic

like Jenna Ortega playing Wednesday Addams in the Tim Burton movie, her hand and her black scars dancing on the railing, that then jumps, her black gauze, her long black braids, her absolute seriousness, not a smile, her triple axels and her quadruple

and Salchow under the music of the

combined with Lady Gaga's

as one more

.

And her trainer, Eteri Tutberidze, next to her.

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