The International Testing Agency has formally confirmed that Kamila Valieva, the 15-year-old Russian figure skating phenomenon, tested positive for a banned substance.
The sample that returned a positive result for the banned heart medication Trimetazidine was reportedly provided by Valieva on Christmas Day 2021, during the Russian Figure Skating Championships held in St. Petersburg.
However the failed test result was only reported to the World Anti-Doping Association on February 8, a day after she was part of the ROC figure skating team that won gold at the Beijing Winter Olympics, after having been sent to a WADA accredited lab in Stockholm, Sweden for processing.
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In a statement the ITA confirmed that upon learning of the positive result on February 8, Valieva was immediately provisionally suspended, but a day later saw the decision overturned by Russia's Anti-Doping Agency (Rusada) following an appeal from the skater.
The ITA is now appealing Rusada's decision on behalf of the International Olympic Committee to the Court of Abitration for Sport, which is expected to issue a decision on the case ahead of Valieva's next event - the women's singles competition - which kicks off next Tuesday, February 15.
A spokesperson said that the IOC wanted the situation to be resolved 'as quickly as possible,' while confirming that the team figure skating medals would not be officially awarded until after the CAS decision.
'For all concerned, not just the Russian athlete, we need a resolution and we are working as fast as we can to get that,' Mark Adams said, per The Guardian. 'Such cases are not helpful to the Games.'
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The controversy could see Valieva thrown out of the Olympics and Russia stripped of its gold medal, which would then go to the United States, who finished second. Japan currently sit in the bronze medal position, with Canada finishing in fourth.
Valieva has continued to practice ahead of the women's singles event, but has not answered questions from journalists since news of the positive result broke.
The ITA has stressed that as an athlete under the age of 16, Valieva is a 'Protected Person' under the WADA code, meaning the 'strict liability' rules faced by adult athletes may not necessarily apply to her.
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Valieva was not officially confirmed as the athlete involved until early this morning, February 11, with the ITA taking the step of waiving her anonymity as a minor because of 'heightened public interest' in the case.
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Hannah Smith