Star Russian Olympic figure skater, 15-year-old Kamila Valieva, tested positive for using a banned medication before the start of the Beijing Olympic Games, Time Magazine reported. Valieva’s positive test result might mean Russia’s gold medal is revoked.
The sample was allegedly taken before she won last month’s European championship, a performance which landed her as head of Russia’s “quad squad,” going to Beijing for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, according to Time.
The drug she is accused of using is a heart medication that contains trimetazidine. The World Anti-Doping Agency banned this drug because it is said to help with blood flow and endurance. According to ABC, it’s unclear if Valieva had a medical exemption or not.
A cardiologist at Northwestern Medicine, Sadiya Khan, told NBC News that the drug offers relief from heart disease symptoms.
“If it’s being used in someone who’s healthy and has no blockages, it’s theoretically possible that it may help them exercise for longer or more efficiently, which specifically in an athlete’s case, may give them a false advantage,” Khan said. “It seems very unlikely that this medication was being prescribed for someone so young for any appropriate reason.”
She added that it might not be as effective at improving the blood flow as people believe. “Even if this was used to cheat, it’s likely not the most effective way to cheat,” Khan said.
According to NBC News, it is unclear what will happen to the Russian team or Valieva.
Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, told ABC the International Olympic Committee is conducting an investigation. “Let’s, for the sake of understanding, wait for some explanations either from our sports officials or from the IOC,” he said.
On February 10, NBC News reported that Valieva attended training with her coaches.
Olga Ermolina, a spokeswoman for the Russian Figure Skating Federation, said, “Kamila is not suspended from participating in the Games,” adding, “We are waiting for the official statements from the IOC.”
A spokesman for IOC, Mark Adams, told Time that “legal consultation” would be required between the International Skating Union and the Olympic committee moving forward.
“Everyone is doing absolutely everything [so] that the situation can be resolved as soon as possible,” Adams said, warning that “legal issues can sometimes drag on.”
Minors are offered protection from being identified under the World Anti-Doping Code, which, according to ABC, has added complications to the case.
The International Skating Union released a statement to say they “cannot disclose any information about any possible anti-doping rule violation.”
If the Russian team is disqualified, the U.S. team, who medaled silver, will take their place to receive gold for the first time in the event. If an appeal were to happen, it could delay the medals presentation even longer than the case already has.
An Olympic figure skater from Japan, Shoma Uno, told ABC he didn’t know what to believe regarding Valieva’s case.
“Everybody is giving our best in practice to perform for an event like this,” he said. “What I think, good or bad, is not a big deal, but doping is something [to which] all athletes pay extra attention.”
