Russian figure skater Valieva's entourage under investigation by World Anti-Doping Agency

The world's top anti-doping authority will investigate the entourage of 15-year-old Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva who tested positive for a banned drug, plunging her into a doping scandal at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games.

Watching her from the sidelines were her three coaches, Eteri Tutberidze, Sergei Dudakov and Daniil Gleikhengauz, as well as the team doctor Filipp Shvetsky and a physiotherapist.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said in a statement to Reuters on Sunday that it would ask its independent Intelligence and Investigations Department to probe the coaches, doctors and other adults surrounding the athlete.

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Earlier, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it had formally asked WADA to launch an investigation.

WADA also said that the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) has indicated it has already started investigating the entourage because Valieva is a minor.

Valieva tested positive for a banned heart drug at her national championships last December, but it took more than six weeks for her to be notified, allowing her to compete in Beijing.

Tutberidze, the most sought after figure skating coach in Russia, has not responded to Reuters emails.

On Saturday, she said she was certain Valieva was "clean and innocent" in an interview with Russian state television.

At 15, Valieva is one of the youngest athletes to have a positive test revealed at the Olympics, prompting outrage and questions about the role of the adults around her and the continuing scourge of Russian doping in international sport.

The IOC set up the entourage commission in 2010 as positive drug cases of athletes mounted in the 2000s, especially with the re-testing