“Hope for a positive outcome has increased.” Solovyov – about the decision of RUSADA in the Valieva case

Olympic figure skating champion Dmitry Solovyov in a conversation with , he said that after the decision of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) to recognize the innocence of the figure skater Kamila Valieva the expectation of a positive outcome for the athlete has increased.

Earlier, RUSADA informed the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) that it had made a decision in the case of the Russian figure skater. As stated in WADA’s statement, the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Commission concluded that there was “no fault or negligence” in the Russian woman’s anti-doping rule violation. Valieva escaped sanctions other than the cancellation of her results on the date of the sample (December 25, 2021).

– Of course, I was delighted, because I worry about Camila as a friend and as a very talented person who could not allow such negligence. She didn’t deserve the negativity, the battles and the noise that arose after this whole story. I am for everything to end in favor of Camila, so that she can continue to live in peace, to rejoice and to remember it as a nightmare.

I understand that nothing has been finally decided yet, but it is already a positive step to ensure that everything is over and the charges are dropped against Camila, at least now hope has increased, said Soloviev at MatchTV.

At the Beijing Olympics, Valieva, as part of the Russian team, won gold in team competitions. Before the personal tournament, it became known that the illegal drug trimetazidine was discovered during the figure skater’s doping test. The CAS allowed Valieva to participate in the individual competitions, where she finished fourth. The figure skater, who was 15 at the time of her positive doping test, is a protected person under WADA rules. In February, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ruled that medals for the team tournament would not be awarded until Valieva’s case was closed. The American team took second place in the competition, the Japanese won bronze.

WADA demanded a four-year ban from Valieva for an anti-doping rule violation and the voiding of her results shown in competitions on December 25, 2021, including the 2022 European Championships and the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing.