The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) issued a release on Friday with details of the upcoming hearings in the case of Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva. In particular, it became known which judges will decide the fate of the Olympic champion. Interesting facts from their resumes and other important information are in the material of the Sport correspondent.
What you need to know about the ending of the Valieva case. If anyone needs to refresh the background on the Kamila Valieva case, which has been dragging on since December 2021, look first at the end of the material. For everyone else, here is the key information from the CAS release:
— The hearings will take place at the CAS headquarters in Lausanne from September 26 to 28. If necessary, a reserve day of September 29 may be used. Some parties, witnesses and experts will speak via videoconference, including Valieva herself.
— All parties to the process — the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), the International Skating Union (ISU), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and Valieva — wished to hold hearings behind closed doors. For this reason, outsiders will not be allowed into the courtroom, including representatives of the US Figure Skating Team, who previously requested CAS to be allowed into the hearing.
— The CAS panel, which will make a decision on Valieva’s case, consists of three people. Two judges were nominated by the parties. ISU and WADA nominated American Jeffrey Mishkin, Valiev nominated Frenchman Mathieu Maisonneuve. RUSADA, being a plaintiff in one procedure and a defendant in two others, decided not to participate in the process of nominating judges. The president of the panel, in accordance with the CAS code, was appointed deputy chairman of the court's appellate and arbitration department. It was James Drake, representing Great Britain and Australia.
— On the first day, September 26, the parties will read out brief opening statements, then factual witnesses will be heard. Testimony from expert witnesses will be heard on September 27. On September 28, CAS will hear the parties' final statements and rebuttals. After the hearing, the panel will prepare a verdict, but at the moment it is impossible to indicate the timing of its decision. The verdict will be final and binding, but the parties will have the right to appeal within 30 days to the Swiss Federal Tribunal on limited procedural grounds.
— WADA, ISU and RUSADA demand from CAS to cancel the decision of the disciplinary anti-doping committee of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (DAK RUSADA) about the absence of guilt or negligence in Valieva’s actions, and therefore no punishment was imposed on her, with the exception of the cancellation of the gold of the Russian championship — the result , shown on December 25, 2021, the day of the positive test. As previously reported, WADA demands that CAS disqualify Valieva for four years, as well as cancel all her results, starting from December 25, 2021. RUSADA requests a decision from CAS that would find Valieva in violation of anti-doping rules with a penalty including or limited to a warning. There have been changes in the ISU's position. Previously, this organization demanded a verdict at the discretion of CAS, which would also determine the results of the team figure skating competition at the Beijing Olympics. Now the ISU insists on Valieva's disqualification for four or two years, plus the cancellation of her results.
— Finally, the release sets out the position of Valieva herself, which neither she nor her representatives have ever voiced. The Russian figure skater (or rather, her lawyers) is challenging the jurisdiction of CAS over the claims of WADA, ISU and RUSADA, since “a doping violation has not been proven”, and demands that her winning result at the Russian Championships be reinstated. In the alternative, Valieva's party seeks a finding of no fault or negligence in her actions since the violation was not willful, the period of ineligibility cannot exceed two years, and no results can be annulled.
“Russia is worth a solemn football mass” Now about what all this means. The main thing is that we now know in whose hands the fate of the Russian figure skater is. But it would be extremely unprofessional to make any superficial conclusions based, for example, on the nationality of the judges. All three are experienced arbitrators who, as sports lawyer Anna Antseliovich noted in a commentary for sports lawyer, value their business reputation, and violation of codes of legal ethics and principles of conduct can lead to the deprivation of their right to engage in legal activities. By the way, as Antseliovich rightly recalled, the CAS panel that made a decision in favor of Valieva at the Beijing Olympics included an American arbitrator.
However, you can find something interesting in the resume of the arbitrators who will make a decision in Valieva’s case. For example, James Drake, who specializes not only in sports matters, but also in international commercial disputes in various fields, participated in the trial of the American runner Christian Coleman, who was also accused of a doping violation. It consisted of missing three doping tests, and the arbitrators took into account the athlete’s position, reducing the period of his disqualification from two to one and a half years.
Jeffrey Mishkin has served as the National Basketball Association's (NBA) executive vice president and general counsel and has been involved in every legal matter the league has been involved in over the past 35 years. Since 2000, Mishkin has represented many other sports organizations in various matters, including the National Hockey League (NHL), the National Football League (NFL) and Major League Baseball (MLB). Reputable American publications recognized him as Sports Lawyer of the Year three times.
As for Mathieu Maisonneuve, whom Valieva chose, the French lawyer’s practice includes work in the French National Basketball League, the French Swimming Federation, and the National Olympic and Sports Committee of this country. His doctoral dissertation at the Sorbonne University in Paris focused on arbitration in sports-related disputes. Finally, among Maisonneuve’s publications there are also those dedicated to Russia. In the archives you can find his article from 2015 entitled “Russia and Qatar are worth a solemn football mass” — we are, of course, talking about the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups, with a reference to the famous saying of Henry IV “Paris is worth a mass.”
What are the chances of winning in court? In any case, we can only hope for a fair court decision. And the chances are high, according to Antseliovich, that it will be in favor of Valieva.
“When making a decision to cancel the results, the so-called principle of fairness is taken into account,” the lawyer emphasized. “First of all, the concentration of the detected prohibited substance will be assessed. And whether the substance was present when the result was achieved, which they are asked not to cancel, and whether there were clean samples.” this position, there is a high probability that the result may be abandoned. After all, in any case, it was not achieved under the influence of a prohibited substance. And the fact that Kamila and her side insist that the actions were unintentional, that there was no purpose to improve the results and the substance was not used in the preparation to the tournament will also be taken into account. Therefore, I rate the chances that Kamila’s results will not be canceled quite highly.»
In conclusion, here is the necessary background on the Valieva case. The history of her doping violation dates back to December 25, 2021. It was on this day that the figure skater performed a free program at the victorious Russian Championship, after which she passed a sample in which, in an extremely small concentration, the substance trimetazidine, prohibited for use by athletes, was found, which in ordinary life is a medicine for the treatment of heart problems.
Valieva’s positive doping test became known on February 8, 2022, the day after the end of the team tournament at the Olympic Games in Beijing. The Russian national team with Valieva as a member won it, but the IOC postponed the award ceremony for the winners, first for a day, and then for an indefinite period. The scandal was already flaring up with all its might: contrary to the practice of not disclosing details adopted in relation to “protected persons” (Valiyeva received this status because she was 15 years old at the time of the violation), the International Testing Agency (ITA) revealed all the details during the Olympics.
Initially, a temporary suspension was imposed on Valieva, but a day later DAC RUSADA canceled it, allowing the skater to participate in the personal tournament of the Olympics. This decision was protested by WADA, ISU and the IOC, but the CAS visiting panel with American, Italian and Slovenian arbitrators sided with Kamila. However, the Russian figure skater, unable to withstand the stress, took only fourth place in the individual tournament of the Games, although she was initially considered the favorite.
In the future, it was expected that RUSADA would complete an investigation into the actions of both Valieva herself and her entourage within six months after the notification of positive doping -test – that is, by August 8, 2022. However, the process dragged on, and as a result, WADA exercised its right, transferring the case directly to CAS in early November of the same year. Nevertheless, DAC RUSADA nevertheless rendered its verdict – after WADA’s decision – considering that there was no guilt or negligence in Valieva’s actions. Not only WADA and ISU did not agree with this, but also, quite unexpectedly for many, RUSADA itself. As a result, claims to CAS by these three organizations were combined into one process, hearings on which will begin in less than two weeks.