The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has cleared Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva is compete at the Beijing Winter Olympics. The court rejected demands to impose a suspension on the teenager, in a case involving a positive doping sample taken in December.

The ruling came less than 12 hours after a hastily arranged hearing that lasted into early Monday morning that the 15-year-old Valieva, the favorite for the women’s individual gold, does not need to be provisionally suspended ahead of a full investigation. The court gave her a favorable decision partly because she was a minor or “protected person” and is subject to rules different from an adult athlete.

The panel also quoted fundamental issues of fairness in its decision, the fact that she tested clean in Beijing. They also noted that there were “serious issues of untimely notification” of her positive test.

The positive drug test was not exposed until Feb. 8, ie, after Valieva had competed in the team event at the Winter Games. She had then set a record for the first quadruple jumps ever completed in the women's Olympic competition.

Valieva won gold for the team event with the Russian Olympic Committee on Monday.

The gold medal, and any medal she wins in the individual competition, could still be taken from her.

After Valieva won her legal battle, the intense media glare on the teenager is unlikely to go away. The attention will now turn to how the trial affects her performance on Tuesday. The teenager was due for training in Beijing just 30 minutes after the CAS decision was announced.

The women’s single event starts with the short programme on Tuesday and concludes on Thursday with the free skating.
-AP/RT