After enduring a two-year wait following the theft of gold medals due to an opponent’s doping scandal, the U.S. Olympic figure skating team has finally been awarded the recognition they rightfully earned.
On Wednesday, skaters from the U.S. and Japan gathered on a podium at Champions Park in Paris to receive their gold and silver medals, originally achieved at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
At that event, Russia claimed the gold, significantly aided by the 15-year-old Kamila Valieva, who made history as the first woman to execute a quadruple jump at the Olympics.
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Kamila Valieva, representing the Russian Olympic Committee, competes in the women’s team free skate program during the figure skating at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Monday, Feb. 7, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
However, Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a banned substance that treats angina, during the Russian national championships in December 2021, with the test results being disclosed only after the team final in Beijing. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) then decided not to award medals for the team figure skating event until Valieva’s situation was completely resolved.
The athletes were forced to wait close to two years to discover the outcome concerning their medals.
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On February 2, 2023, the team expressed their “deep frustration over the lack of a definitive resolution regarding the Team Event” through an Instagram statement.
“They have long deserved this recognition that has been delayed due to the ongoing investigation,” the statement added. “U.S. Figure Skating urges a fair and just decision to ensure that all clean sport athletes impacted by this scenario are rightfully awarded their medals.”
Nathan Chen of Team United States reacts during the Men’s Single Skating Short Program Team Event at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics on February 04, 2022. (Elsa/Getty Images)
It was only in January of this year that Valieva was declared guilty of an anti-doping violation, resulting in the ROC being stripped of its gold medal. Consequently, the International Skating Union downgraded the Russian team from gold to bronze, while the U.S. team ascended from silver to gold, and Japan moved from bronze to silver.
Following this change, they had to wait an additional seven months for their official medal ceremony, which was already significantly overdue at that point.
Members of the U.S. Olympic figure skating team celebrate after receiving gold medals following the disqualification of Team Russia for doping at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in Paris. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
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This week, the American athletes finally celebrated their much-anticipated medals.
Madison Chock, Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Zachary Donohue, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Alexa Knierim, and Vincent Zhou were all present at the revised medal ceremony in Paris, surrounded by 13,000 enthusiastic fans.
“It’s truly surreal. We received our medals and then I turned around to see the Eiffel Tower, and it was just breathtaking,” remarked Chock during the event. “It left me speechless.”
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