Russia’s Valieva says Olympic doping case sparked by mix-up with grandfather’s medication
Global News
Teen figure skater Kamila Valieva made the argument at a hearing with the Court of Arbitration for Sport into whether she should be allowed to continue competing in Beijing.
The 15-year-old figure skater embroiled in a Winter Games doping scandal has defended her positive drug test by saying it was caused by a mix-up with her grandfather’s heart medication, an Olympic official said on Tuesday.
Kamila Valieva made the argument at a hearing with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) into whether she should be allowed to continue competing in Beijing, Denis Oswald, Permanent Chair of the International Olympic Committee’s Disciplinary Commission said.
“Her argument was this contamination happened with a product her grandfather was taking,” Oswald said.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the IOC did not immediately respond to a Reuters email after his comments.
Earlier, the IOC said in a press conference that Valieva’s “B” sample was yet to be analyzed despite the initial positive result.
The teenager was cleared by CAS to compete in Tuesday evening’s single event after a panel agreed with the Russian Anti-Doping Agency’s (RUSADA) decision to lift a ban on her.
Valieva was tested at her national championships on Dec. 25, but the positive test for a banned angina drug was not revealed until Feb. 8, after she had already competed at the Beijing Games.
Valieva, who is due to compete in the single competition starting at about 6 p.m. Beijing time (1000 GMT), spoke to Russia’s Channel One after practice on Monday.
