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ISU revokes Russian skater Kamila Valieva’s neutral status
Kamila Valieva lost her neutral athlete status in international competitions after returning in January following a lengthy doping ban. The ISU also revoked Mark Kondratiuk’s status and rejected Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin’s applications.
The International Skating Union (ISU) revoked the status that allowed Russian skater Kamila Valieva to compete as a neutral athlete in international competitions. Valieva returned to competition in January after serving a lengthy doping ban.
In the same decision, the ISU also revoked the neutral athlete status of 2022 European champion Mark Kondratiuk. Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin were found not to meet the conditions required for the status.
Conditions set for neutral status
Athletes from Russia and Belarus will be able to compete under a neutral flag in the 2026–2027 season following the international competition ban that began in 2022. To qualify for this status, athletes must not be members of the Russian or Belarusian armed forces or security services, must not have participated in the war in Ukraine and must not have publicly supported the war.
The ISU did not specify which condition Valieva failed to meet. Posts supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine appeared on Valieva’s social media accounts.
Doping ban and return
Valieva was at the center of a doping investigation during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The skater, who was 15 at the time, won a gold medal in the team event and became the first skater to perform a quadruple jump at the Olympics.
It emerged that a test for trimetazidine, a heart medication, had returned positive after the Russian championships in December 2021. Valieva argued that the result was caused by accidental contamination of the medication.
Following several appeals, Valieva was handed a four-year ban effective from December 25, 2021. After the ban expired, Valieva returned to competition in January but lost the right to compete again in international events after her neutral status was revoked.
Russia prepares an appeal
Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev announced that the four skaters would challenge the decision before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. Degtyarev said the Russian Figure Skating Federation and the athletes would file an appeal against the ISU shortly.
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