Kamila Valieva cleared to skate but no medals if she finishes in top three

Kamila Valieva will skate her spellbinding short program at the Capital Indoor Arena in Beijing on Tuesday, amid a swirl of controversy over the decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to rule against re-imposing her provisional suspension for a doping offence.

The CAS cited “exceptional circumstances” and the fear of causing the 15-year-old “irreparable harm” for their decision to allow her to compete despite having tested positive for the banned heart medication trimetazidine following a test at the Russian National Championships on Christmas Day.

In a further extraordinary twist, the International Olympic Committee responded to the ruling by declaring that no medals will be awarded for the women’s event if, as expected, Valieva finishes in the top three, until such time as the full inquiry into the circumstances of her doping infraction has run its course.

Essentially, CAS ruled that because Valieva’s age makes her a ‘protected person’ under the World Anti-Doping Code, she may be eligible for a lesser sanction – including one that does not involve a suspension – once her case is heard in full at a later date.

It means Valieva, the world record holder who competed in the short and free programs of the mixed team competition last week, becoming the first female skater to land quad jumps at the Olympics in the latter, is now free to take part in the women’s singles competition which she is the overwhelming favourite to win.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), one of three parties, in addition to the International Testing Agency (ITA) and the International Skating Union (ISU) to contest the lifting of Valieva’s provisional suspension by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), said it was “disappointed” by