10 TIME February 28/March 7, 2022
Committee (IOC) has ruled that no medals
will be awarded in either event until the re-
view of Valieva’s doping case is concluded,
which could take months.
The decisions put in limbo not only
the results of the team event, but also the
women’s individual competition, in which
Valieva was the favorite for gold. And it has
had disastrous consequences for the eff orts
to make the Olympics a model of clean and
fair competition.
For skating fans, the news is at once
shocking and unsurprising. Russian ath-
letes are competing in Beijing under the
IOC fl ag, as the Russian Olympic Commit-
tee, after the country was sanctioned in
2019 for running a massive state- sponsored
doping program that was unearthed fol-
lowing the 2014 Olympics in Sochi. Sev-
eral dozen Russian athletes have had their
Olympic medals stripped in the wake of the
revelations because of doping violations.
Until now, however, fi gure skating has
largely escaped the taint.
The Moscow training center where Va-
lieva skates, however, is shrouded in con-
troversy. As a notably quick succession ofDOPINGRussia at center
of another Olympic
drug scandal
BY ALICE PARKTHE WOMEN’S FIGURE SKATING EVENT IN
Beijing was teed up to be a celebration: a
showcase for a remarkable group of Russian
teenagers who are pushing the boundar-
ies of their sport, with jaw-dropping qua-
druple jumps proving that women are capa-
ble of the same athletic feats as their male
counterparts.
Then one of those women—the young-
est and most talented of the three—tested
positive for a performance- enhancing drug.
Kamila Valieva, 15, failed a drug test taken
on Christmas Day, but because of delays in
reporting, her results didn’t become avail-
able until after she had competed in the
team event at the Olympics, where she be-
came the fi rst woman ever to land a quadru-
ple jump at the Games, helping the Russian
team top the U.S. for gold. She successfully
appealed a suspension, and ultimately an
independent arbitration court determined
that Valieva could continue to skate while
a separate investigation into her positive
test continued. The International OlympicHIGHS AND LOWS‘This is a big hit to the
Olympic movement.’
—SCOTT MOIR, TWO-TIME OLYMPIC
GOLD MEDALISTSNOWBOARDING
Chloe Kim secured her
status as the world’s status as the world’s
top women’s halfpipe top women’s halfpipe
snowboarder, earning snowboarder, earning
gold with her fi rst run gold with her fi rst run
at the Games. Kim’s at the Games. Kim’s
win makes her the fi rst win makes her the fi rst
woman to win back-woman to win back-
to-back Olympic gold to-back Olympic gold
medals in the event.medals in the event.ALPINE SKIING
It was impressive
enough that Sofia
GoggiaGoggia could compete could compete
in Beijing, let alone in Beijing, let alone
take home silver in the take home silver in the
women’s downhill. The women’s downhill. The
Italian alpine skier tore Italian alpine skier tore
her ACL and fractured her ACL and fractured
her fi bula three weeks her fi bula three weeks
before the Games. before the Games.CURLING
Two hospital nurses—
Team USA’s Team USA’s Nina Nina
RothRoth and Britain’s and Britain’s
Vicky WrightVicky Wright—took —took
a break from the front a break from the front
lines of the pandemic lines of the pandemic
to represent their to represent their
countries as vice-skips countries as vice-skips
on the women’s on the women’s
curling teams.curling teams.BIATHLON
Norway’s Marte Olsbu
RoiselandRoiseland is racking is racking
up a record haul. With up a record haul. With
three golds—in two three golds—in two
solo events plus a solo events plus a
relay—and a bronze, relay—and a bronze,
she’s the fi rst woman to she’s the fi rst woman to
win four biathlon med-win four biathlon med-
als in one Olympics.als in one Olympics.THE BRIEF
OLYMPICS
medals in the event.ALPINE SKIINGVALIEVA: ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT—AFP/GETTY IMAGES; SNOW: DOUG MILLS—THE NEW YORK TIMES/REDUX; GETTY IMAGES (3)