It's done. A few days late after the announcement made on Twitter by Witold Banka, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced via a press release that it had registered a request from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to open proceedings on the matter. of the young Russian skater Kamila Valieva (photo above, with Vladimir Putin). The court based in Lausanne indicated that its “ arbitration procedure » had begun. It will be followed by a panel of three judges. One of them will be appointed by WADA, the second will be chosen jointly by RUSADA and Kamila Valieva, the last one being appointed by the head of the appeals division of the CAS. The panel will then make recommendations on whether to hold a hearing, but no timetable has been set. The CAS was referred to WADA after the decision of the Russian anti-doping agency (RUSADA) not to communicate the results of the hearings in the Valieva case. A decision justified on the Russian side by the age of the skater – less than 16 years old – at the time of the Beijing 2022 Winter Games, where her positive test for trimetazidine, a drug used to treat angina, was revealed, less two months earlier at the Russian championships. In the event that the CAS decides that the skater has violated anti-doping rules, she could be sanctioned with a four-year suspension. All her results obtained from December 25, 2021 would be canceled, including Russia's victory in the team figure skating competition at the Beijing 2022 Winter Games. Kamila Valieva would not be able to participate in the Milan Winter Games- Cortina 2026. But an appeal will be possible to the Swiss Federal Court within 30 days after the announcement of the CAS decision.
