Did Valieva Tank Her Last Skate?

[Althea]

The farce that is the Olympics continues to devolve.

In '14, when Russia hosted the Olympics, they were caught swapping dirty urine samples for clean samples.

The penalty? All Russian Olympic athletes are now 'hiding' behind the moniker Russian Olympic Committee. 'Russia' isn't allowed into the Olympics.

Fast forward from the cheating in '14, and we now have a 15 year old girl who is arguably the best skater in the world. She was pumped full of drugs during training, and it was revealed that she failed a urine test late last year.

The IOC flaccid response?

Nothing. They did nothing. They decided to let her compete, after she already helped Russia win a team skating event. They decided to render a decision after some future hand wringing.

Then, they announced that if she medals in any future events, there will be no medal ceremony in case they have to take her medal(s) away. This nonsense dominated the Olympic coverage day and night.


Yesterday, the best skater in the world offered a performance that any novice could have topped. She did just enough of a dump job to come in fourth, allowing two other Russian skaters to enjoy the medal ceremony.

The moment it happened, I knew she did it on purpose. Much has been made about the interrogation she suffered from an unfeeling coach/matriarch, instead of a micron of sympathy or support.

Odd, because I am convinced that she was ordered to dump her routine in order to allow the other teammates to have their moment on the podiums.

 

[Life is Golden]

That was heartbreaking. And she was phenomenal. Definitely deserved the Gold.

 

[Althea]

That was heartbreaking. And she was phenomenal. Definitely deserved the Gold.

These Russian kids are amazing. Of course, the program has a history of problems.

She deserved the gold for her ability for sure, but rules are rules, and Russia breaks them every time they compete.

What's sad, is that the drug cocktail she was forced to take was NOT her decision. In fact, none of the children in the Olympic program has any say over their lives in Russia.

It's just going to be interesting to see how long it takes for the truth to come out.

I'm sure you saw her performance. That was not even the worst performance she could have offered. She clearly wanted to stay off of the podium, and had to resort to an obvious intentional clusterfuck.

 

[Hawkeye10]

The way NBC treated her is outrageous.....this is what we have become....cruel.


Note: I have not watched a second, I am going off of reports.

 

[Life is Golden]

These Russian kids are amazing. Of course, the program has a history of problems.

She deserved the gold for her ability for sure, but rules are rules, and Russia breaks them every time they compete.

What's sad, is that the drug cocktail she was forced to take was NOT her decision. In fact, none of the children in the Olympic program has any say over their lives in Russia.

It's just going to be interesting to see how long it takes for the truth to come out.

I'm sure you saw her performance. That was not even the worst performance she could have offered. She clearly wanted to stay off of the podium, and had to resort to an obvious intentional clusterfuck.

I saw all of her performances and the first couple of them were just amazing.

Here is what I don't understand, the "drug" she allegedly tested positive for is a heart medication which I cannot imagine how it would improve anyone's, especially a 15 year old's, performance. I think they said her grandfather was on the medication.

The whole thing was just sad.

 

[Althea]

I saw all of her performances and the first couple of them were just amazing.

Here is what I don't understand, the "drug" she allegedly tested positive for is a heart medication which I cannot imagine how it would improve anyone's, especially a 15 year old's, performance. I think they said her grandfather was on the medication.

The whole thing was just sad.

It's helpful to read about Russia's long history of cheating.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetor...ole-to-swap-urine-samples-of-olympic-athletes

One of the Russians in charge of the program escaped, and is in California. He helped with the drug cocktail in '14.

The heart med she tested positive for is one of three in a cocktail that increases endurance. Only the heart med is on the list of banned substances for the aforementioned reason. Putin is nothing if not a master manipulator/liar.
The grandpa claim doesn't pass muster. Was she 'accidentally' eating his meds? I believe she claimed that 'someone' must have given her the pills with her vitamins?

The tragic part is that at the age of these skaters, they could achieve the same results with harder work. They're simply amazing when compared to the rest of the field.

But...Russia should have been banned from the Olympics for a decade after the '14 incident in Sochi.

 

[Life is Golden]

It's helpful to read about Russia's long history of cheating.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetor...ole-to-swap-urine-samples-of-olympic-athletes

One of the Russians in charge of the program escaped, and is in California. He helped with the drug cocktail in '14.

The heart med she tested positive for is one of three in a cocktail that increases endurance. Only the heart med is on the list of banned substances for the aforementioned reason. Putin is nothing if not a master manipulator/liar.
The grandpa claim doesn't pass muster. Was she 'accidentally' eating his meds? I believe she claimed that 'someone' must have given her the pills with her vitamins?

The tragic part is that at the age of these skaters, they could achieve the same results with harder work. They're simply amazing when compared to the rest of the field.

But...Russia should have been banned from the Olympics for a decade after the '14 incident in Sochi.

Thanks. I did not know about all this. That is just crazy. Wow.

I hope the girl will continue, she is truly talented.