Kamila Valieva: Figure skater who took banned substance misses Top 3 in singles

Feb. 17 (UPI) -- Kamila Valieva, the Russian teen figure skater controversially cleared to compete in the 2022 Winter Games despite a positive test result for a banned substance, failed to medal in the singles event Thursday in Beijing.

Gasps from the small crowd swept through Capital Indoor Stadium as the 15-year-old, known for her smooth transitions, flexibility and ambitious spins, stumbled and hit the ice four times. Her 225.09 total score was fourth-best in the 25 skater field.

Valieva held her face in her hands and cried after the routine. Some fans chanted her name as she listened for her score. Russian coach Eteri Tutberidze appeared to be harshly critical of the failures in the routine when she spoke to Valieva off the ice.

The favorite for the gold medal was consoled by teammates, including Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova, who earned respective gold and silver medals in the event.

Japan's Kaori Sakamoto earned bronze.

Shcherbakova totaled 175.75 in her free skating routine and 255.95 overall. Trusova totaled 177.13 in her free skate and 251.73 overall. Sakamoto logged respective scores of 153.29 and 233.13.

"Right moment, right place, and everyone saw what I can do," Shcherbakova told NBC. "This, I think, is why I am skating. That was my 100% today. I left all my energy on the ice."

Americans Alysa Liu and Mariah Bell each briefly held the lead in the competition, but finished seventh and 10th, respectively. Team USA's Karen Chen finished 16th.

The International Olympic Committee announced earlier this week that it would not hold medal ceremonies for any event in which Valieva places in the Top 3.

Valieva was the last skater to perform Thursday, thanks to her top score in the short program, but her subpar free skating routine wasn't enough to push her total past her teammates and Sakamoto. All four top skaters attempted extremely difficult routines and were given the highest scores for skating skills.

Valieva's routine included a quad salchow, triple axel, quad tope loop with a triple toe loop, a triple loop, flying camel spin, quad toe loop with a single Euler and a triple Salchow, a triple flip with a triple toe loop, triple Lutz and more.

She performed to Bolero by French composer Maurice Ravel.

Shcherbakova's ambitious routine featured a quad flip with a triple toe loop, a quad flip, two double axels, a flying camel spin, a triple Lutz with a triple loop, a triple flip with a single Euler and a triple Salchow, a triple Lutz and more.

Trusova performed a five quad jumps as part of her performance. She started the routine with a quad flip, quad Salchow and a quad toe loop. She also performed a double axel with a triple toe loop, a triple Lutz with a single Euler and a triple Salchow, among other acrobatic jump and spin sequences.

Judges gave Trusova a 19.90 for her quad Lutz with a triple toe loop, which was the top score for any element in the competition. Shcherbakova's quad flip with a triple toe loop was the second-highest scored element, at 18.66.

Sakamoto received a 9.46 for skating skills, the best score in the competition. Shcherbakova and Valieva ranked second and third in skating skills with respective scores of 9.29 and 9.11.

Poland's Ekaterina Kurakova went second and posted a 126.76 in her free skating routine. Her combined score of 185.84 kept her in first place through most of the competition until Team USA's Bell took the ice.

Bell totaled a 136.92 to push her combined score to 202.30 and took over first place, before Liu took over with the top score.

Bell attempted a triple flip with a triple toe loop, a triple loop, triple Salchow, double axel, triple flip with a double toe loop and a double loop, triple Lutz with a double toe loop and more as she performed to Hallelujah by K.D. Lang.

Liu went 18th and attempted a triple axel, triple loop, triple flip, double axel, triple Lutz with a triple toe loop, triple Lutz with a single Euler and a triple Salchow, a triple flip with a double toe loop and more. She performed to Violin Concerto in D by Tchaikovsky.

She scored a 139.45 in her free skating routine and totaled a 208.95.

Chen, the first American and 14th overall skater to compete, posted a 115.82 for her free skating routine.

Chen attempted a double axel with a triple toe loop, a triple flip, triple Salchow, triple loop, a triple Lutz with a double toe loop and a double loop and more before she hit the ice hard when she attempted her final jump, a triple loop.

She performed to the song Butterfly Lovers by Takako Nishizaki.

Valieva, the gold medal favorite, tested positive for the banned drug trimetazidine Dec. 25 at the Russian championships. The Russian was notified of the positive result Feb. 8 and issued a suspension, but the ban was lifted upon appeal.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport, the world's top legal body for sports, effectively cleared Valieva on Monday to remain active in the 2022 Winter Games.

Valieva's mother and lawyer recently told the CAS that the positive test was the result of the teen figure skater accidentally ingesting trace elements of her grandfather's heart medication.

Earlier this week, CAS released a document that stated Valieva tested positive for Hypoxen and L-carnitine. Those substances, which aren't on the banned list, also are used to treat heart conditions.

The IOC said it planned to organize medal ceremonies for events that Valieva placed in the Top 3 -- once the case is concluded. That means that medals from the team figure skating event also are on hold, due to the Valieva and the Russian team's gold-medal finish in that competition.

The move to not present medals amid the scandal upset many other former and current Olympians and Olympic committees. Arbitrators cleared Valieva by declining appeals from the World Anti-Doping Agency, the IOC and the International Skating Union to reinstate a suspension the Russian Anti-Doping Agency initially levied against her.

The figure skating schedule continues with the pair skating short program Friday night in Beijing. The event airs at 5:30 a.m. EST Friday on USA and re-airs at 8:30 p.m. Friday on NBC. The free skating portion of the pair skating competition airs at 6 a.m. Saturday on USA and re-airs at 8:30 p.m. Saturday on NBC.