| Hosts: Beijing, China Dates: 4-20 February |
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It became one of the most unpleasant moments of sport recently.
After a failed drugs test, 15-year-old Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva left the ice in tears as her controversial Olympics came to a distressing conclusion.
It should never have happened, said former Olympic champion RobinCousins, who himself was overcome by emotion during his commentary.
There was anger and sympathy as the games came to an end.
The biggest star in the Russian Olympic Committee squad was Valieva.
She became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at an Olympic Games when she did so in the team event.
The story began to change after that jump.
The medal ceremony was delayed because Valieva failed a drugs test.
She tested positive for trimetazidine, a drug used in the prevention of angina attacks, because it has been proven to improve physical efficiency.
Valieva was allowed to compete in the individual event because of a court ruling that lifted her suspension.
The timing of the test result, which came during the Games and nearly six weeks after the sample was taken, was pointed out by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
If Valieva were not allowed to compete, it would be anirreparable harm.
If the Russian finished on the podium, there wouldn't be a medal ceremony. Valieva's score could still be removed because the full investigation is yet to be completed.
The climax of the competition will be on Thursday.
Valieva was the leader after the short programme, but Anna Shcherbakova was 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217
The crowd gasped in disbelief as Valieva fell to the ice after one of a number of errors.
This is difficult to watch, said a commentator.
After her second error, it was like she was going around as fast as she could.
It was like she just wanted to get off the ice.
The teenager was in tears when her routine ended and she was waiting for her scores. Outside of the medal places, she finished fourth.
The 1980 figure skating Olympic champion was emotional while analyzing the action.
He said that someone thought having her do that was better than having her go home and sort this out, knowing she could have two more Olympics ahead of her.
I am speechless for all the wrong reasons.
The talent and the quality of Valieva should never have been put into this arena.
The Capital Indoor Stadium is in Beijing.
It felt wrong to be watching.
If you hadn't followed the story for the past 10 days, you would have seen a skater fall a few times.
This was a 15-year-old who had failed a drugs test and had already been in tears on the ice.
There were gasps when she fell for the first time in the arena. As she fell again on the ice, it was more of a sympathetic applause of encouragement that began to spread.
She threw her hand into the air and did not show her emotions. She sobbed as she waited for the result. The chants from those on their feet brought her comfort.
Watching this unfold, you could not help but wonder what the long-term effect would be of having gone through this. All you could think about was that she is a child.
The authorities will deal with the matter of Valieva's failed drugs test in full.
The ROC gold in the team event and Valieva's fourth-place finish in the individual event will be decided by that.
There will be intense questions posted to the authorities about how this situation was allowed to develop to the stage it overshadowed the competition and left a 15-year-old in this position.
The World Anti-doping Agency said it will investigate the teenager's team, including coaches, doctors and other adults.
The eventual gold medal winner is the 17-year-old Shcherbakova.
We watched them when they were 12 years old with the quadruple jump.
How is this happening? They teach them very young.
There is an issue, how and why. It isn't a question of talent. How is that talent nurtured or created?
The process of winning gold for Great Britain had been "farcical" according to Christopher Dean.
The politics surrounding it to get to this point has been a mess.
The women's event is suffering from figure skating.
There will be more debates given that a Russian has tested positive for a banned substance and the country is already banned from international competition.
Valieva's Games may be over, but this story is far from over.
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