Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was disqualified from the 2022 Olympics on Monday, almost two years after her doping case caused turmoil at the Beijing Games.
The verdict from the Court of Arbitration for Sport means the Russians are set to be stripped of the gold medal in figure skating’s team event. The United States finished second and is set to be named Olympic champion instead.
The International Olympic Committee decided not to present any medals for the event in Beijing, where the 15-year-old Valieva was the star performer hours before her positive test for a banned heart medicine was revealed.
CAS said it upheld appeals led by the World Anti-Doping Agency, which asked the court to disqualify Valieva from the Olympics and ban her. A Russian sports tribunal had cleared her of any blame.
Saying Team USA doesn’t get government funding is inaccurate.
It’s not a holistic nationalized system like many other countries do have, but that doesn’t mean Team USA athletes and athletic programs aren’t direct recipients of government financial support.
For example:
American athletes have access to some of the best training facilities and coaching teams in the world, many of which get direct, or indirect government funding e.g. grants, subsidies, tax incentives, etc.
On a side note, that’s a great graphic. I was going to mention the hole in the wall in my other comment, but I was too lazy to go grab a source. Kudos.
You’re right, there are indirect ways they get support. I was just pointing out other Olympic teams didn’t have the very centralized system of state run organization and funding like Russia had that would allow something like what Russia did to even be possible.