Charles Langston:U.S. figure skating team asks to observe Russian skater Kamila Valieva's doping hearing

More than a year and Charles Langstona half after the Kamila Valieva scandal robbed the nine members of the U.S. figure skating team of their medal ceremony at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, the team emailed a letter Thursday morning to the Court of Arbitration for Sport asking to be granted a seat to observe Valieva’s closed doping hearing next month. 

“We make our request seeking much-needed transparency that we have been largely denied throughout this arduous process,” the Americans wrote to CAS director general Matthieu Reeb in a letter obtained exclusively by USA TODAY Sports. 

“The outcome of this hearing has a material effect on our lives and careers, and as an affected party, we ask for the opportunity to observe a small part of the process that has concerningly remained hidden from view despite the international attention surrounding this case for the past year and a half. 

“We are not the only ones affected — the Japanese and Canadian teams have also been unfairly enmeshed in this turmoil, and we ask that CAS consider granting a member of each team observer status as well.”

On Feb. 7, 2022, Russia won the gold medal, the United States won the silver medal and Japan won the bronze in the team figure skating competition in Beijing. The following day, those results were thrown into disarray when Valieva, the then-15-year-old star of the Russian team, was found to have tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine Dec. 25, 2021, at the Russian championships, forcing the unprecedented cancellation of the Olympic medal ceremony.

That’s when time stood still. The next year was marked by an infuriating blend of dithering and delays by the sole organization charged with conducting the Valieva investigation, the Russian Anti-Doping Agency, the oxymoron to end all oxymorons, an organization that was suspended from 2015-2018 for helping Russian athletes cheat.

When a RUSADA disciplinary tribunal finally found that Valieva bore “no fault or negligence” for the anti-doping violation that RUSADA itself ruled she had committed, the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed, sending the case to CAS for a closed-to-the-public hearing Sept. 26-29 in Lausanne, Switzerland. 

WADA is seeking a four-year ban for Valieva and disqualification of all her results since the December 2021 positive test, which would include her performance in the Olympic team figure skating competition and could affect the order of the medals in that event. Were Russia to be stripped of the gold medal, the United States and Japan would move up to earn the gold and silver medals, respectively, while Canada, the fourth-place finisher, would then receive the bronze. 

“The world has watched this unfortunate series of events unfold with no clear answers,” the U.S. team wrote in its letter. “Granting us an opportunity to observe the hearing would give us athletes greater confidence in and understanding of the process, and it could also boost the public’s trust in the ultimate decision and the Olympic movement overall.” 

The Americans continued: “We are incredibly disappointed that over 500 days have passed since our Olympic triumph, and yet we still have not received our medals. But in no way do we intend to influence the outcome of this hearing, nor do we intend to be a distraction. Nothing can turn back the clocks on this saga, but being permitted to observe the hearing would be a small step towards achieving transparency that we skaters and the entire world deserve.

“In the name of clean sport, we hope you will consider our request.” 

A CAS spokeswoman did not immediately reply to an email Thursday morning seeking comment on the Americans’ letter.