Kamila Valieva
Overview
Kamila Valieva is a Russian figure skater who won a gold medal in the team event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, but received a four-year suspension from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after testing positive in a doping test. She dominated the junior stage with outstanding jumping ability and was considered a strong competitor at the senior level, but is currently banned from international competitions due to the suspension.
Main content
Early life and early career
Kamila Valieva was born on April 26, 2006, in Kazan, Russia. She started skating at age 3 and began competing in junior international competitions from the 2019-2020 season. She stood out by winning the 2020 Junior World Championships, and in 2021 she also topped the Junior Grand Prix Final. In particular, she was called a "prodigy" for freely performing high-difficulty jumps such as the triple Axel, quadruple Lutz, and quadruple toe loop.
2021-2022 season and Beijing Olympics
In the 2021-2022 season, Valieva made her senior debut, winning the Russian National Championship and also taking gold at the European Championships. At the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, she competed in the team event, placing first in both the women's singles short program and free skate, decisively contributing to the gold medal for the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) team. However, before the individual event began, controversy erupted when it was revealed that a doping sample collected in December 2021 tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine.
Doping scandal
Valieva's doping violation was officially announced on February 8, 2022. The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) issued a provisional suspension to Valieva on February 9, but it was lifted the next day due to an appeal filed by her associates. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), and the International Skating Union (ISU) appealed this decision to CAS, and on February 14 CAS ruled that Valieva was eligible to compete in the individual event at the Beijing Olympics. As a result, Valieva earned the right to compete in the individual event, but the medal ceremony for the top three finishers was postponed.
She placed first in the short program in the individual event, but made several jumping errors in the free skate and ultimately finished fourth. Later, in January 2023, RUSADA officially imposed a four-year suspension on Valieva, and she appealed this to CAS.
Confirmation of suspension and international competition ban
On January 29, 2024, CAS confirmed that Valieva had committed an anti-doping rule violation and confirmed the four-year suspension. The suspension period was set to run from December 25, 2021, to December 24, 2025. CAS also stripped Valieva of her Olympic team gold medal and invalidated all her individual results. Accordingly, the Russian Olympic Committee team's gold medal was passed to the U.S. team. Valieva claimed the suspension was unfair and filed a lawsuit in Russian domestic courts, but could not overturn the decision of the international sports community.
Domestic competition activity
During the suspension period, Valieva was unable to compete in international events, but she continued to compete in domestic Russian competitions. The Russian Figure Skating Federation held its own competitions despite the international ban, and Valieva competed in the Russian Grand Prix series in the 2023-2024 season, winning several times. In the 2024-2025 season, she has also participated in domestic competitions, including the Russian National Championship, and continues to display outstanding skill.
Recent developments
Even after the CAS ruling in January 2024, Valieva has been actively active in Russia. In the 2024-2025 season, she demonstrated she remains in good form, winning the Russian Cup Final. However, her return to international competition likely will not be possible until after the suspension ends in December 2025. Meanwhile, among Russian figure skating fans, claims that she is still a world-class skater coexist with disappointment over the doping issue, and the Russian government has expressed support for her while legal battles over her return to the international stage continue.
Related topics
- [[Figure skating]]
- [[2022 Winter Olympics]]
- [[Sport in Russia]]