In the midst of a dramatic month centered around testing positive for a banned substance, Russian Olympic Committee's Kamila Valieva turned in her worst performance of the Winter Olympics on Thursday. Valieva fell several times and finished fourth in the women's free skate competition.
She fell on two of her quad attempts while also falling or slipping on at least four occasions during the performance. ROC's Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova won gold and silver medals, respectively. Japan's Kaori Sakamoto ended up taking the bronze medal due to Valieva's miscues.
It has been a tumultuous Olympics for the 15-year-old skater.
On Monday, Valieva was cleared to continue competing in the women's figure skating competition at the Winter Olympics. However, regardless of how she finishes in any event, Valieva nor any of her teammates will have a medal ceremony, even though they would be recognized as the winners of the event. Valieva and the Russian Olympic Committee team have already won gold in the team figure skating event in Beijing.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport cleared Valieva to continue taking part in the Beijing Olympics after a hearing took place. Judges ruled that Valieva, who is 15, isn't going to be suspended for the positive test.
Valieva tested positive for the drug trimetzidine, which is typically used to treat people with a heart condition, on Dec. 25 at the Russian nationals. However, the Swedish lab that conducted the test didn't release the results until earlier in February after the Games had already begun.
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