Summary
- U.S sprinter accuses IOC of being racially biased
- IOC accused of giving Russian skater special treatment
- IOC dismisses allegations and offers an explanation
The 2022 Beijing Olympics continues to make headlines for some great performances during the Winter Olympics but also because of the controversies that keep cropping up.
Last week, reports surfaced that 15 year old Russian skater Kamila Valieva had tested positive for a steroid called angina drug trimetazidine.
The IOC initially did not confirm if Valieva was the athlete that tested positive but later did so and allowed Valieva to continue taking part in the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
U.S Sprinter Accuses IOC of Being Racially Biased
This prompted American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson to protest over the treatment that was dished out to her by the IOC during the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Richardson was suspended for 30 days by the IOC after she tested positive for cannabis. She told the IOC that she decided to smoke it as her mother passed away recently and cannabis helped her to deal with the pain.
Most athletes agree that cannabis does not provide any performance enhancement but still the IOC found that a 30 day suspension was the way to go with Richardson.
The African-American sprinter accused the IOC of double standards saying that Valieva did not get any suspension because she was white!
Can we get a solid answer on the difference of her situation and mines? My mother died and I can’t run and was also favored to place top 3. The only difference I see is I’m a black young lady. https://t.co/JtUfmp3F8L
— Sha’Carri Richardson (@itskerrii) February 14, 2022
Richardson wanted to know how Valieva could get away with no punishment when she tested positive for angina drug trimetazidine, a substance that is known to be a performance enhancer.
IOC Offers Explanation Over Valieva Decision
The IOC dismissed the allegations made by Richardson and said you cannot compare the two cases between American and Russian athletes as each case is treated as an individual case. Mark Adams, representative for the IOC said Richardson tested positive before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics started while Valieva tested positive during the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
Reports now show that Valieva had listed two substances on her anti-doping form and both substances were legal to boost heart function. The World Anti-Doping Agency stated that the presence of Hypoxen and L-carnitine waters down the defense that trimetazidine could have accidentally entered the 16 year olds body.
US Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart said these findings are very serious and the presence of such medication makes it appear that the young Russian was doping.