The tribunal banned Valieva from skating in figure skating through the century
Implications of the Valieva Disqualification for the U.S. Skating Team at the Winter Olympics 2016 Winter Olympics and the PAMELA 2020 Olympic Games
The results of the retroactive disqualification of Ms. Valieva did not fit with the scope of the arbitration procedure and will have to be examined by the sports organizations concerned.
The sample collected from Ms Valieva on December 25, 2016 was found to contain the banned substance tri Metazidine.
The move clears the way for the last medals from the Winter Games to finally be awarded, but leaves a black eye on one of the event’s most popular competitions.
The head of the US Anti-Doping Agency believes Russia has hijacked the Olympic games.
With Valieva now sidelined and her stunning performances disqualified, the International Skating Union is now expected to determine who should receive which medals from Beijing’s team skating competition.
Russia placed first in the team competition, followed by the United States and Japan. Canada had a fourth place finish. The gold medal will be given to the U.S.
It’s not known when the final decision will be made on the medals, but US officials believe that American athletes will be recognized for their victory.
“Today is a day we have been eagerly awaiting for two years, as it is a significant win for Team USA athletes but also for athletes around the world that practice fair play and advocate for clean sport,” she said in a statement.
Hirshland acknowledged the roster of U.S. figure skaters caught up in the Valieva controversy, including Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Madison Chock, Zachary Donohue, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Alexa Knierim and Vincent Zhou.
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Tygart also described this decision as a victory for clean sport and said he hoped it would lead to more aggressive enforcement of doping rules to rein in Russian wrong-doing.
Dozens of other athletes around the world were caught up in the collateral damage from the scandal. The medals for the team figure skating competition were not given out while the case was being reviewed.
“We were dressed in our ceremony gear, in a room waiting to to take a bus to the venue and we were told, this is canceled,” recalled Zach Donohue, a member of the U.S. figure skating team, in an interview with NPR last year.
The athletes from Canada, Japan, Russia and the U.S. waited to find out if the Russian team would be disqualified.
This case brought renewed attention to a long history of athletes using steroids that has put young competitors at risk, and corrupted athletic programs in Russia.
The same sports tribunal heard Russia’s appeal of the decision by the International Olympic Committee to deny them entry into the Summer Games in Paris.
Russians are expected to be allowed to compete, but only as neutral athletes, without flying the national flag, playing their country’s anthem, or wearing official Russian sports uniforms.
The World Anti-doping Agency called out coaches and doctors who allowed use of performance drugs in children.
The Winter Olympics figure skating competition is two years away, and the IOC has decided to award medals after the 2012 Summer Olympics were engulfed in a DOPING scandal.
Several athletes will speak to the media later Tuesday, according to the United States Olympic committee.