Adelina Sotnikova’s (27-RUS) “doping self-certification” at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics ended up being a farce. As a result, the chances of “figure queen” Kim Yeon-ah (33) being named a gold medalist at the Games are virtually zero.
An official from the Korean Olympic Committee (KOC) said, “We have received a response from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to Sotnikova’s doping inquiry. The IOC concluded that it is difficult to re-investigate Sotnikova because she has never tested positive for doping,” the official said on March 7.
In a YouTube broadcast published on March 13, Sotnikova said, “I was told that I tested positive in a doping test in 2014. Then a second sample came back negative and I was cleared,” she said.
Sotnikova brought up the story of Kamila Valyeva (17-RUS), who tested positive for doping at the 2002 Beijing Winter Olympics, as part of her defense of the Russian athlete and to emphasize the fact that the world sporting community holds Russian athletes to an unusually high standard.
“The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) made an (unintelligible) ruling that Valyeva violated anti-doping rules but was not culpable,” the International Ice Skating Union (ISU) said at the time, adding that it would appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
At this point, the proverbial “arm bends inward” could have been used. The tide turned when the YouTube channel posted an edited version of Sotnikova’s interview on March 5. Sotnikova’s doping allegations began to spread like wildfire.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) takes two samples for doping tests. If the first (A) sample tests positive, the second (B) sample is also tested to determine if the athlete is doping. If the A sample is positive, but the B sample is negative, the test does not move on to the next step.
So, even if Sotnikova’s confession was true, there was no problem, but the Korean Sports Ministry decided to put the proverbial “sacrifice while you still can” into action. The KOC sent an inquiry to the IOC, saying, “This is a very rare case (with different test results for A and B samples), so it is necessary to investigate it again.” It was a situation where ‘thanks to the sacrifice’ is good and ‘the bottom is the main battle’.
The IOC had already conducted an extensive review of Russian athletes at the Sochi Olympics in 2017, which resulted in four of the medals won by Russian athletes (teams) changing hands (three gold, one silver), but not the women’s single medalist in figure skating.
When news broke of the KOC’s decision to ask the IOC to reopen the case, Sotnikova clarified, “I only meant that doping was ‘detected,'” adding, “There was a scratch on my doping sample (at Sochi), and it wasn’t my fault.” She claimed that she was referring to the tampering of the sample, not the fact that she tested positive for doping.
Sotnikova was considered one of the best Russian athletes at the Sochi Olympics, behind Yulia Lipnitskaya, 25. But she became a gold medal contender when she finished second in the short program with a score of 74.64, just 0.28 points behind Kim (74.92). She then turned the tables in the free skate, scoring 149.95 points, 5.76 more than Kim (144.19).
After Sochi, Sotnikova hung up her skates and the 2018 Pyeongchang Games were won by fellow Russian Alina Zagitova, 21. In Beijing 2022, Valyeva was considered one of the strongest gold medal contenders, but she missed out due to doping. Korean fans were hoping that Sotnikova’s defense of Valeryeva would fall under the proverbial “crayfish on the side of the crab,” but in the end, she was told to “wipe her lips with spit.
Adelina Sotnikova poses for a photo during the Sochi Olympics.
When news broke of the KOC’s decision to ask the IOC to reopen the case, Sotnikova clarified, “I only meant that doping was ‘detected,'” adding, “There was a scratch on my doping sample (at Sochi), and it wasn’t my fault.” She claimed that she was referring to the tampering of the sample, not the fact that she tested positive for doping.
Sotnikova was considered one of the best Russian athletes at the Sochi Olympics, behind Yulia Lipnitskaya, 25. But she became a gold medal contender when she finished second in the short program with a score of 74.64, just 0.28 points behind Kim (74.92). She then turned the tables in the free skate, scoring 149.95 points, 5.76 more than Kim (144.19).
After Sochi, Sotnikova hung up her skates and the 2018 Pyeongchang Games were won by fellow Russian Alina Zagitova, 21. In Beijing 2022, Valyeva was considered one of the strongest gold medal contenders, but she missed out due to doping. Korean fans were hoping that Sotnikova’s defense of Valeryeva would fall under the proverbial “crayfish on the side of the crab,” but in the end, 스포츠토토 she was told to “wipe her lips with spit.