The Olympics serve as an international, multi-sport event to unite athletes across the world to compete in honor of their nations. Athletes across various disciplines engage in fair play with other athletes of different cultures, all while embodying the Olympic motto, “Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together.” The International Olympic Committee, better known as the IOC, accentuates a key component of the games following the motto: a zero-tolerance policy against cheating of any form. The IOC strictly prohibits the use of doping products designed to enhance athletic performance. According to the official Olympic website, this fight against doping led to the creation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 1999, and the IOC and WADA continue to promote equitable play for all athletes. 

Nevertheless, one country in particular has come under scrutiny by WADA and the IOC: Russia. The Russian flag and national anthem have not been seen or heard in the Olympics since the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games. Russian athletes now compete under the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC).

The following timeline of the path to the Olympic ban on Russia and current deterrents on Russia is given using information from a Washington Post article in 2022. 

Starting in February of 2014 during the Sochi Games, Russian athletes won a total of 33 medals, more than doubling the medal count from the previous Olympic games. The Russian medal count soared over the medal counts of the other participating nations in all disciplines, leading to apprehension and slight suspicion of the turnout of the games. 

A few months later, former Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) officials Vitaly Stepanov and Yuliya Stepanov announced that Russia had sponsored doping for all its athletes. Furthermore, an unnamed Russian athlete alleged that 99% of Russian athletes take performance-enhancing drugs. These events led WADA to formally accuse Russia of running a state-sponsored doping program through shadow laboratories and the destruction of urine samples. Consequently, the International Amateur Athletic Federation, representing the track and field international body, banned the Russian team from international competition. 

Starting in May of 2016, the IOC began to retest old samples from Russian athletes from as far back as the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. This came after the former head of Russia's anti-doping laboratory Grigory Rodchenkov testified that he had switched out dirty samples for clean ones. Additionally, it was uncovered that at least 15 medalists from Sochi were part of the state-run doping program. 

At first, the IOC allowed individual sporting federations to make their own decisions regarding Russia, allowing Russian athletes to compete under their flag and anthem. In December of 2017, the IOC changed course and made Russia ineligible to compete in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. However, it still cleared 168 Russian athletes to compete under the ROC as the “Olympic Athletes from Russia,” provided they followed strict testing. Even so, many of the top Russian athletes were not authorized to compete. 

In September of 2018, the IOC gave Russia a three-week deadline to provide IOC officials with access to samples from Russia's anti-doping laboratory. Russia missed the deadline by three weeks. WADA, therefore, asserted that Russia had tampered with the samples it sent to the IOC. This led the IOC to consider banning Russia for four years. WADA then banned Russia from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 Beijing Games, as well as other international competitions until 2023. However, the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced the ban to two years in December of 2020, keeping Russia out of the next two Olympics and the World Cup. 

While this sums up the history of Russian doping reported on by the Washington Post, state-sponsored doping by the Russian government has come to light once again with the ongoing case of Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva.

Valieva began her performance at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics with the team event in figure skating. She placed first in both the women’s short program and free skate, contributing to the team from the ROC’s win in the event. Valieva was praised for her performance, becoming the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics. However, on February 9th, Russian newspaper RBC Daily reported that Valieva had tested positive for the drug trimetazidine, which had delayed the medal ceremony for the team event.

WADA listed trimetazidine as a banned substance in 2014. The drug treats angina, a type of chest pain, by increasing blood flow to the heart. Although trimetazidine is not necessarily “performance-enhancing” in the sense that it may not enhance a skater's performance during a competition, it does improve endurance. If a skater were to use the drug outside of competition, they would be able to practice their programs at a higher rate than other skaters, thereby giving them an unfair advantage. 

On February 9th, the International Testing Agency (ITA) released a statement confirming that Valieva had tested positive for trimetazidine. The sample was collected on December 25th of last year, during the Russian Figure Skating Championships. The delay in testing was allegedly due to staff shortages caused by COVID-19. Although Valieva took the test in December, a positive test would still render her unable to compete for the rest of the figure skating season, including the Olympics. 

Immediately following the ITA’s statement, RUSADA placed a provisional suspension on Valieva, preventing her from competing in the women’s single event. Valieva appealed the ruling on the same day, and RUSADA lifted the suspension, allowing her to compete in the women’s single event. The reason behind this was that “the consumption of a contaminated product” may have caused the positive test result.” The IOC, WADA, and the ISU also appealed the lifting of the suspension before the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS).

The hearings, conducted by a panel of three arbitrators, took place on February 13th. Valieva’s counsel argued that she had unintentionally ingested trimetazidine belonging to her grandfather, who has used the drug since his heart replacement surgery. Because Valieva only tested positive for a small amount of trimetazidine and had never tested positive for it before, her counsel argued that she did not take trimetazidine to enhance athletic performance.

On February 14th, the CAS announced its ruling to uphold RUSADA’s decision to lift the provisional suspension on Valieva. The CAS came to the decision on the basis that Valieva, at age 15, is a minor, that banning Valieva from competing at the Olympics would inflict “irreparable harm” on her, and that the delay between the drug test and the release of the results was too long.

In response to the ruling, WADA released a statement voicing its disappointment with the CAS’s decision. Under the World Anti-Doping Code, there are no exceptions for placing mandatory provisional suspensions on athletes who fail doping tests, including minors. WADA also explained that RUSADA failed to flag Valieva’s sample as a priority sample, meaning the anti-doping laboratory did not know to fast-track its analysis. 

The IOC also expressed its disapproval of the ruling. It announced that it would not hold the medal ceremony for the team event during the Olympics. If Valieva finished on the podium in the women’s single event, it would not hold a flower ceremony or a medal ceremony until after the Olympics.

The decision to allow Valieva was generally celebrated in Russia. Alexander Zhulin, a Russian ice dancing coach, expressed in an interview with the Russian News Agency TASS, “I’m just delighted, finally justice has prevailed. We were left with the opportunity to enjoy the skating of the most brilliant figure skater of the last 200 years.” Similarly, Alexei Mishin, a Russian figure skating coach, stated in an interview with TASS, “Justice has triumphed. Kamila Valieva will be able to perform as powerfully as usual, despite the negative background.”

However, many members of the international figure skating community conveyed their opposition to allowing Valieva to compete. Katarina Witt, two-time Olympic champion in figure skating, stated in an interview with Russian TV network RT, “There should be no tolerance for the use of doping in any sport and in any discipline. I’ll be blunt: doping should lead to a life ban.” Polina Edmunds, two-time US national silver medalist in figure skating, echoed Witt’s beliefs on Twitter, stating, “I strongly disagree with the decision to allow Kamila to compete… This is not clean sport.” Finally, Yuna Kim, 2010 Olympic champion in figure skating, posted a message on Instagram, which read, “Athlete[s] who violate doping cannot compete in the game. This principle must be observed without exception.”

Despite the scandal surrounding Valieva, most of the figure skating community does not blame her for the situation. On the other hand, the community has raised concerns about the adults surrounding Valieva, which include her coaches Eteri Tutberidze, Sergei Dudakov, and Daniil Gleikhengauz. Many have criticized Tutberidze for her harsh coaching practices, including starving athletes, pushing athletes to skate while injured, and creating an overly competitive environment among her skaters. Both RUSADA and WADA have launched investigations into Tutberidze’s involvement with Valieva’s case. However, both Valieva and Tutberidze remain celebrated figures within Russia, so it is likely that the Russian public will continue to support them, no matter how the IOC, the ISU, or WADA decide to pursue Valieva’s case.

Another member of Valieva’s team is Dr. Filipp Shvetsky, the team doctor for ROC athletes who has also treated several of Tutberidze’s skaters. In 2007, Shvetsky was banned by Russia for providing banned substances to members of the Russian rowing team. After Russia reinstated him, Shvetsky joined the Russian national figure skating team. Shvetsky’s history of anti-doping violations makes him a suspect in Valieva’s case; however, there are currently no charges of wrongdoing against him and, according to Reuters, there has not yet been any evidence to prove his involvement.

After the hearings, The New York Times reported that along with trimetazidine, Valieva also had hypoxen and L-carnitine, two other heart medications, in her system. While these substances are not banned by WADA, they can improve oxygen function, increase endurance, and reduce fatigue. 

Valieva finished the women’s single event in fourth place, behind her two teammates, Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova, who placed first and second respectively. Her teammates are also coached by Tutberidze. After the competition, during the IOC daily briefing on February 18, President of the IOC Thomas Bach described a “tremendous coldness” by which Valieva's coaching team greeted her. He also stated that the IOC would take appropriate measures against Tutberidze, but it is unclear what these measures will be.

Currently, the IOC has strict anti-doping laws and procedures that it imposes on all Olympic games and athletes. Testing and the investigation of urine or blood samples taken from athletes serve as the main identifier of a clean athlete. These include samples taken during the Olympics, the events leading up to the Olympics, and other international games. The IOC also promotes REVEAL, a platform that enables individuals to report suspicious behavior indicative of doping anonymously.

The regulation of clean play in the Olympics is a priority for the IOC, and while 100% doping-free athletes are a goal, there is still much progress to be made. Valieva’s case, in particular, demonstrates that the anti-doping system is deeply flawed, despite the measures that the IOC has taken to hold Russia accountable for its state-sponsored doping program. Fair sport relies on maintaining clean competition. The next actions taken by the IOC, ISU, and other organizations will prove to be integral to the future of sports. 

The authors would like to thank Jackie Wong, Dave Lease (who created a video series, As the Blade Turns, that discussed Valieva’s scandal), and FS Gossips, a blog on figure skating, for their contributions to this article.