The Kamila Valieva doping case has brought with it consequences, not just for the 17-year-old Russian figure skater. But also for the top four teams that competed at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. After being banned from the sport for four years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, her scores in Russia’s team skating event were disqualified, prompting the United States to move into the gold medal position and Japan into the silver medal position.

However, in a recent update, the International Skating Union shared an Olympic Medal Update, stirring the debate about the bronze medal allocation yet again.

ISU shares a Bronze medal update regarding Kamila Valieva

According to a post on X by Christine Brennan, the USA Today columnist, “We finally hear from the International Skating Union 10 days after the first statement” regarding Russia earning the bronze medal. The ISU’s decision, as outlined in their statement, was made after a thorough evaluation by legal experts. They considered the specific rules and principles governing the Olympic Winter Games (OWG) team event.

Importantly, they highlighted that Rule 353 para 4 in the ISU Special Regulations does not apply in this particular case, meaning they couldn’t simply reallocate points based on that rule. One key aspect they emphasized is that rearranging points could end up hurting the relative team rankings if points were to be reallocated.

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This could unfairly affect teams that weren’t involved in the initial incident under scrutiny. So, the ISU decided to stick to the rules and principles they’ve set. They also mentioned that they’ll work on making the rules clearer in the future to handle similar situations better.

Furthermore, because the decision from the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) might still be challenged, the ISU won’t be talking about this matter publicly anymore for now, according to the statement. So how did this begin in the first place?

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How did the debate begin?

Initially, it seemed like the Russian team might lose their bronze medal, with Canada expected to move up and claim it. However, the International Skating Union (ISU) announced that only Valieva would be disqualified, allowing Russia to keep its bronze.
This decision sparked anger and confusion. Skate Canada did not agree with the decision because they believed they should have been awarded the bronze medal following Kamila Valieva’s disqualification.

Many stated that according to Rule 353 of the International Skating Union’s technical rules for events, competitors who initially placed lower than the disqualified competitor should move up accordingly in their placements. Since Canada initially finished fourth, they expected to move up to third place and receive the bronze medal.

However, ISU’s latest update adds a new layer to the medal drama. Despite all the confusion, the U.S. team will eventually earn their gold medals. But for now, many questions continue to linger. What do you think about this? Comment below!

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