Russian teenager failed drug test before winning Olympics gold
The Russian athlete embroiled in a doping controversy failed her doping test before winning her Olympic gold medal, we have learned.
Kamila Valieva made headlines this week when it was revealed she had tested positive for the banned substance Trimetazidine, which is typically used to treat chest pain.
The 15-year-old is part of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) team that won gold in the figure skating event on Monday (February 7th).
It has now been revealed that the teenager tested positive for the drug on December 25, 2021 during Russia’s annual figure skating championships in St Petersburg, according to the Daily Mail.
Despite Valieva’s positive result, the country’s anti-doping agency allowed her to participate in the Beijing Winter Olympics.
However, the Swedish experts did not report on the sample until Tuesday, February 8, after Valieva had won its gold medal.
Following the news, she was suspended by her federation. But after appealing the decision, she was later allowed to compete again.
She can now aim for another medal, this time in women’s individual skating in which she is an overwhelming favorite to win gold again.
However, the International Testing Agency (ITA) disputes the decision to allow Valieva to return to the games.
An ITA spokesperson said: “Under the World Anti-Doping Code, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the International Skating Union (ISU), RUSADA and the IOC have the right to appeal the decision to lift the provisional suspension before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
“The IOC will exercise its right to appeal and not wait for RUSADA’s reasoned decision, as a decision is needed before the next competition in which the athlete is scheduled to participate (in women’s individual skating on February 15).
“Following the delegation of the IOC’s anti-doping program in relation to the Olympic Games to the ITA, the ITA will conduct the appeal before CAS on behalf of the IOC.”
Under World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules, it is mandatory that the athlete who tests positive for banned substances be publicly named.
As Valieva is under 16, she is considered by WADA to be a “protected person” and should have remained anonymous.
However, the ITA said it was forced to issue a statement on the matter after it was widely reported.
TMZ, which increases blood flow to the heart, has been banned by WADA since 2014 and the US Anti-Doping Agency says it can improve athletes’ performance in endurance events.
However, Vasily Konov, a journalist with Russian sports channel Match-TV, said the drug did not improve performance in the traditional sense and it would not help him win.
Writing on social media, Konov said: “The drug trimetazidine does not help an athlete in any way. At all. It was found in a single sample in December. A tiny amount. Nothing in his samples before or since.
“There is no doping in the conventional sense of the word. No! This heart medication has no impact on…performance. Now leave Kamila alone.”
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