Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was the talk of the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, as the then-15-year-old phenom helped the Russian Olympic Committee to a team gold medal.
However, the world came crashing on Valieva and the Russian team as she tested positive for a banned substance. At the time, she tested positive for three different substances meant to improve heart function in a sample taken prior to her arrival at the Beijing Olympics. She claimed that the banned substance may have been the result of contamination with medication that her grandfather took regularly.
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Kamila Valieva, of the Russian Olympic Committee, reacts after the women’s free skate program during the figure skating competition at the 2022 Winter Olympics, on Feb. 17, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)
On Monday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) disqualified Valieva from the Olympics, which means the Russians are likely to have their gold medal stripped in the figure skating team event. The U.S. finished second and is set to be named Olympic champion instead.
The CAS banned her for four years, through December 2025. Her ban is retroactive to December 2021.
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Kamila Valieva reacts after skating during the Women Single Skating Short Program on day eleven of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Capital Indoor Stadium on Feb. 15, 2022 in Beijing. (Harry How/Getty Images)
The International Olympic Committee decided to present any medals for the event in question. The organization said it upheld appeals led by the World Anti-Doping Agency, which asked the court to disqualify Valieva and ban her.
A Russian sports tribunal cleared Valieva of any wrongdoing.
“Having carefully considered all the evidence put before it, the CAS panel concluded that Ms. Valieva was not able to establish, on the balance of probabilities and on the basis of the evidence before the Panel, that she had not committed the (doping violation) intentionally,” the court said in a statement.
Kamila Valieva reacts during the Women Single Skating Free Skating Team Event on day three of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Capital Indoor Stadium on Feb. 7, 2022 in Beijing. (Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) officials welcomed the ruling from the CAS.
“The doping of children is unforgivable,” the organization said. “Doctors, coaches or other support personnel who are found to have provided performance-enhancing substances to minors should face the full force of the World Anti-Doping Code. Indeed, WADA encourages governments to consider passing legislation – as some have done already – making the doping of minors a criminal offense.”
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Russian officials had only suggested that Valieva would be disqualified from the national championships and let her keep the Olympic medal and result. The International Skating Union requested a two-year ban.
Fox News’ Paulina Dedja and The Associated Press contributed to this report.