The Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne (CAS) announced the date of the hearing in the case of Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva. The denouement is close, but Western officials and athletes are still dissatisfied and demand speedy investigation. Sport explains why the «Valiyeva case» can drag on indefinitely.
I remember well the moment when everything went wrong. On the evening of February 9, journalists were hanging out in the huge Beijing media center and were already preparing to go home — some with coffee, some with tangerines, with which caring Chinese volunteers fed the press, some with something else. A complete feeling of the end of the working day, until the end of which you need to catch a couple of small things — and that's it. By numbers, sleep 5-6 hours, tomorrow morning we meet at the same place.
For Russian journalists, the trip to the «Medal Plaza» was the smallest thing, where the figure skating team was supposed to be awarded gold medals for winning the team tournament. The event takes 30-40 minutes along with the road — first freeze in the cold (in order to avoid interesting consequences, special salt heaters were even given out on the spot), then a couple of photos and on-duty comments in the mixed zone. Easy hype without much harm to free time.True, an hour and a half before the ceremony it became known that there would be no «Medal Plaza». At first there were vague formulations about the transfer, which no one could really substantiate. Even the skaters were rumored to be ready to board the bus when the alert came. At first no one understood anything, and then…Then a troubled time began, a year and a half long. Endless meetings, loud statements, even louder accusations, and behind all this — athletes who still can’t wait for their medals. Therefore, the words of the leading American dance couple Maddison Chalk/Evan Bates, who said that it is «hard for them not to be sad, because so many months have passed, and there is still no decision», one can understand and even accept. Their feelings almost certainly coincide with what our collections feel — except perhaps with an adjustment for the attitude towards the figure of Kamila Valieva.
On the other hand, the appeals of the head of the American Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and international sports officials are not completely clear. Populist statements demanding an investigation as soon as possible do not take into account the main thing — has there ever been such a high-profile doping precedent involving a «protected person» before? The case is truly historic. It is quite logical that, given the global situation in the world, the proceedings on it are being dragged out — first at the RUSADA stage, and now at CAS.
A logical question arises — what do they want? Justice or a quick reprisal against a young girl who has not yet been found guilty? If there is justice, then it will come, because sooner or later the case will still be closed. On Thursday, CAS released the dates for the hearings — they will be held this fall, from 26 to 29 September. Another month or two — and there will be a verdict. Yes, time will pass. Yes, the delay is huge. But if CAS makes a decision not in favor of Valieva, the Americans will receive their gold medals, which means that justice will prevail — right? they are somewhat different. And they are not talking about justice, but about grabbing. For this reason, you can be sure that if CAS suddenly justifies Valieva or simply decides to keep the Olympic gold for Russia, they will not give up trying to take revenge. They will find any reason to continue the lawsuit, use any loopholes so that golden reflections still loomed at the end of the tunnel. right — for your own you need to try at all costs. And to condemn them, perhaps, there is nothing. That's just in this case, do not shout about justice. Justice has nothing to do with what comes from the mouths of world sports functionaries for the last year and a half.