So… Valieva?

[Faster]

Sha-carri Richardson is coming on and saying its because she is a white Russian girl while she was a black lady and there are different standards.

[baron-pierreIV]

22 minutes ago, Faster said:

Sha-carri Richardson is coming on and saying its because she is a white Russian girl while she was a black lady and there are different standards.

Sha-carri Richardson should understand that Ukraine or the world wasn't staring down the barrel of a thousand guns last summer.  Yup, the world ain't fair.  It is what it is.  Sadly.  

Edited February 14, 2022 by baron-pierreIV

[StefanMUC]

34 minutes ago, Faster said:

Sha-carri Richardson is coming on and saying its because she is a white Russian girl while she was a black lady and there are different standards.

While there surely are double standards at play, racism probably is a lesser factor here.

She probably wasn‘t smart enough (after all, she did take a banned substance) and USOC is not a political tool of a government trying to win at all cost.

 

[FYI]

12 hours ago, Sir Rols said:

On the bright side, the Ukrainians will get a couple of extra days to get their sandbags ready now

Latest intelligence says this Wednesday is D-day. So after she skates on Tuesday night.

[stryker]

3 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

 

What did you want the IOC to do, storm the court like the Capitol Building in Washington?

It’s a court case.

The IOC wanted the ban on Valieva to stay in place and so they appealed to CAS do this.   

 

No but I think there should be some resignations within the IOC starting with Bach and Coates. Both of them bare some responsibility for this mess.

[FYI]

^Yeah, that won't happen, though.

[baron-pierreIV]

5 minutes ago, stryker said:

No but I think there should be some resignations within the IOC starting with Bach and Coates. Both of them bare some responsibility for this mess.

Not gonna happen.  I think they delay was in the results of the Europeans PLUS Covid, PLUS the holidays.  THat's WHY I said -- the Olympics should NOT ANNOUNCE their winners until after TWO years after the fact -- when everything will have been cleared -- and you won't have repeating incidents like this coming up. 

[Faster]

So, elephant in the room. She is not the only Russian that trains with that coach. By association all of them are/should be tainted now. A coach isn't gonna be giving and tapering stimulants for training for one athlete only. Its gonna be everyone. And what about the person who might be on that podium legitimately. They get denied their medal, their moment in the sun. They get denied the pinnacle of their achievement because CAS didn't have the backbone to say, nope cannot compete. What about the damage to the 3 other people that should be on that podium? What about the damage to their careers, their lives and their sense of self? 

Edited February 14, 2022 by Faster

[Guilga]

13 minutes ago, Faster said:

A coach isn't gonna be giving and tapering stimulants for training for one athlete only.

I can add that if they investigate the coach, OH BOY she´s gonna have a hard time convincing her and her club training methods are healthy and not spine breaking for the athletes for even a minimally competent jury! So hopefully, figure skating can bounce back for this healthier.

[MWHoisy]

Is anyone else confused by the "we are going to let her skate, but we aren't going to award any medals."  I know that they want to get it right, but part of winning the gold is standing on top of the podium and hearing your anthem being played, as your flag rises, AT THE OLYMPICS!  This whole, "we will make them feel important whenever they get their medals" is contrary to everything the Olympics stand for in my opinion.  This whole thing is another example of Russia spitting in the face of the Olympics.  They obviously didn't learn with the "country" suspension after so blatantly cheating in Sochi, and here they are at it again.  If the Olympics want to stay relevant in today's world (which I really hope they do), they need to take swift action with Russia, and make it hurt.  Ban them from hosting any type of international competition.  Make the athletes compete for other countries, if we don't want to punish the athletes (not the ROC, that everyone knows is Russia).  Remove any Russian members of the IOC.  Make a long and arduous path for the ROC to earn their way back into the Olympic fold, only after years of demonstrating the mandated changes, with a continued supervision period.   I do feel sorry for the coaches and athletes that have so much pressure put on them by their NOC and government, that they feel it necessary to dope, but they do have a choice.  Cheating should never be an option, and as long as Putin and Russia keep getting away with it, it will never go away.

[StefanMUC]

5 hours ago, Guilga said:

I can add that if they investigate the coach, OH BOY she´s gonna have a hard time convincing her and her club training methods are healthy and not spine breaking for the athletes for even a minimally competent jury! So hopefully, figure skating can bounce back for this healthier.

Or as a positive option, the coach will become a whistleblower and takes the whole system down.

[AustralianFan]

Here we go with the lame excuses ……

 

[StefanMUC]

Yeah, who will believe this bs?

Oh right, the IOC, because it‘s super convenient. Non-Russian media are tearing Bach and the IOC apart today, noteworthy also in the next winter host country. No western potential bidder should even think about a referendum right now. That would be DOA for sure.

[Sir Rols]

It’s always amazing to see how careless elite athlete can be with their family members’ medications…

”Ooh? Now which was it? Do I take the red pill or the blue pill? So confusing?”

Edited February 15, 2022 by Sir Rols

[TheOtherRob]

Valieva's granddad...

[krow]

good to see the IOC gaslighting happening right on schedule. 

gee, i guess this was all a big misunderstanding. i, as a 15 year old, often ingested 3 separate heart medications entirely on accident. 

 

Quote

In defending herself, Valieva has suggested that the positive result stemmed from a case of contamination that “happened with a product her grandfather was taking,” Denis Oswald, an I.O.C. executive board member from Switzerland, told reporters after a news conference on Tuesday. One of her lawyers reportedly made the claim during her hearing on Sunday.

 

[iceman530]

I mean, theyre going to accidentally trip and fall into Ukraine here pretty soon with a bunch of tanks and APC.  Accidents happen all the time. 

[Scotguy II]

As predicted she leads the competition after the short programme. Unless she messes up or test positive for something else then Olympic champion she will be crowned.

[StefanMUC]

Except that she won‘t, at least in terms of medals awarded. And the results will have an * until that case is finally resolved, whenever that may be.

I hope grandpa buys her an extra large birthday gift for all the mess he created for his poor granddaughter.

[Karenina]

On 2/14/2022 at 3:41 PM, Faster said:

So, elephant in the room. She is not the only Russian that trains with that coach. By association all of them are/should be tainted now. A coach isn't gonna be giving and tapering stimulants for training for one athlete only. Its gonna be everyone. And what about the person who might be on that podium legitimately. They get denied their medal, their moment in the sun. They get denied the pinnacle of their achievement because CAS didn't have the backbone to say, nope cannot compete. What about the damage to the 3 other people that should be on that podium? What about the damage to their careers, their lives and their sense of self? 

On 2/14/2022 at 3:56 PM, Guilga said:

I can add that if they investigate the coach, OH BOY she´s gonna have a hard time convincing her and her club training methods are healthy and not spine breaking for the athletes for even a minimally competent jury! So hopefully, figure skating can bounce back for this healthier.

On 2/14/2022 at 9:56 PM, StefanMUC said:

Or as a positive option, the coach will become a whistleblower and takes the whole system down.

Can't say for sure but a couple of usually fairly reliable sources on the FS forum I frequent (both of whom are in Europe) have indicated they're pretty sure Alexandra Trusova is likely clean.  They can't say with 100% certainty, of course, but they wouldn't say this if they didn't have sound reason to believe it, and neither are supporters of Eteri Tutberidze by any stretch.

Based on some of the comments made by the main choreographer for the Team Tutberidze skaters, I'd say it's a lot more questionable how healthy Anna Shcherbakova is - she's at least been encouraged in some unhealthy eating habits which could lead to disordered eating.  

Almost all of the skaters in that camp have had significant over-use training injuries or eating disorders, so there's definitely something wrong, IMO, but there's ZERO chance that Eteri herself will ever blow a whistle to take the whole system down.  She's on record as saying that they needed to find a replacement for the now-banned meldonium and the team doctor for the Sambo-70 skating school is a guy who got banned in 2008 for doping the Russian rowing team.  I'm of the opinion that any investigation into Valieva's entourage will turn into a nothing-burger from RUSADA.

1 hour ago, Scotguy II said:

As predicted she leads the competition after the short programme. Unless she messes up or test positive for something else then Olympic champion she will be crowned.

Oh, no doubt.  Her technical BV is such that it will be impossible to beat her, and the judges while being a bit more reserved with the usual "Skating While Russian" upgrade in GOEs and PCS marks, they weren't exactly withholding them either during the SP this morning.  No reason, whatsoever, after the SP, to believe the podium won't be the Russian sweep as predicted before this scandal broke.

[Scotguy II]

https://www.bbc.com/sport/winter-olympics/60399339

Winter Olympics: Kamila Valieva sample 'showed three drugs'

[baron-pierreIV]

To be honest though, I am sorry for her.  I think she is a victim of honest mistakes -- but rules are rules, and they should be adhered to.  Here's the thing about Russian cheating -- and none more so than in poor Kamilla's case.  They are really so good, ahead of the pack --as she is -- why would she/they have to take performance-enhancing drugs and jeopardize their chances?  That really is the conundrum; and I wish a supreme artist like Kamilla won't be damaged psychologically by this sad turn of events. 

It's all Johnny Weir's fault.  Why isn't he beside his favored "Russian athlete friends" so he can hold their hands and dispense the wisdom of the ages to them??  

Maybe Big Daddy Putin will turn the turned-back tanks into medals for his athletes when they return to Moscow??

Edited February 16, 2022 by baron-pierreIV

[FYI]

18 minutes ago, baron-pierreIV said:

It's all Johnny Weir's fault. 

[Sir Rols]

2 hours ago, baron-pierreIV said:

To be honest though, I am sorry for her.  I think she is a victim of honest mistakes -- but rules are rules, and they should be adhered to.  Here's the thing about Russian cheating -- and none more so than in poor Kamilla's case.  They are really so good, ahead of the pack --as she is -- why would she/they have to take performance-enhancing drugs and jeopardize their chances?  That really is the conundrum; and I wish a supreme artist like Kamilla won't be damaged psychologically by this sad turn of events. 

That echoes my thoughts too, M. I mean, this is a girl who could completely fail one of her elements in her short program and still come out comfortably ahead of the pack - albeit this time with no world record or at least personal best. Why the hell would she need to dope? The answer is, I suppose, could she have reached those levels without an artificial boost to her training?

She’s caused a bit of a split at Chez Rols. Saving the figure skating to watch together with hubby is one of our Winter Games traditions. When I told him, at the end of the short program, that even if/when she wins she won’t be presented with a gold medal he was ropable. “That’s so freaking unfair!”. He’s very in the pro-Kamila camp.

2 hours ago, baron-pierreIV said:

It's all Johnny Weir's fault.  Why isn't he beside his favored "Russian athlete friends" so he can hold their hands and dispense the wisdom of the ages to them??  

Johnny seems to be firmly in the “boot the bitch” camp:

 Tara Lipinski, Johnny Weir ‘Uncomfortable’ During Kamila Valieva’s Skate: ‘We Should Have Not Seen This’

[krow]

16 minutes ago, Sir Rols said:

She’s caused a bit of a split at Chez Rols. Saving the figure skating to watch together with hubby is one of our Winter Games traditions. When I told him, at the end of the short program, that even if/when she wins she won’t be presented with a gold medal he was ropable. “That’s so freaking unfair!”. He’s very in the pro-Kamila camp.

that's interesting.

i won't even watch the ladies, after devouring the team competition. 

first, what's the point? second, why reward NBC with ratings when they're the only ones with enough leverage to snap some IOC necks in place and they don't seem to care either way.

i blame johnny weir for everything, always, until the end of time, but even i can't help agreeing with him.