“We have the feeling that later they will drag on for another two years” – Leonova about Valieva’s case

Silver medalist at the World Figure Skating Championships Alena Leonova told that the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) could delay the decision-making process in the case Kamila Valieva for two more years.

On Friday, it became known that the hearings in the Kamila Valieva case before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) have been completed. A final decision is expected by the end of January 2024.

“This case has dragged on for two years now. It’s OK. I’m just waiting for a positive decision. I hope it will be like that. And it will be there, just as it will be. But I generally have the feeling that they will drag this out for another two years,” Leonova told .

At the 2022 Beijing Olympics, Valieva helped the Russian team win gold in the team competition. Before the personal tournament, it became known that the banned drug trimetazidine was found during the doping test of the figure skater of the Russian championship. The CAS admitted the Russian to the individual competitions of the Games, where she took fourth place. The award ceremony for the Olympic medalists in the team tournament has not yet taken place.

In January this year, the Russian Anti-Doping Agency’s Anti-Doping Disciplinary Committee (DAK RUSADA) ruled that although Valieva had committed an anti-doping rule violation, she bore “no fault or negligence.” The athlete avoided sanctions, except for the cancellation of his results on the date of sample collection – December 25, 2021. Subsequently, RUSADA, the International Skating Union (ISU) and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) filed appeals to CAS, which were consolidated into one proceeding. The first CAS hearings took place from September 26 to 28, after which the court decided to resume them on November 9 and 10 due to the need to prepare additional documents.

Valieva, 17, will perform at the Russian Grand Prix in Kazan on November 11-12.