Winter Olympics: Kamila Valieva claims her grandad’s medicine led to failed drugs test

Russian figure-skater Kamila Valieva has suggested her failed drugs test was a result of contamination with her grandad’s medicine, according to an Olympic official. 

The 15-year-old tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine in December, which is classed by WADA as a cardiac metabolic modular and has been shown to improve physical efficiency. 

Valieva was provisionally suspended last week, but the Russian Anti-Doping Agency lifted the ban the following day. 

The International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency subsequently launched an appeal, challenging RUSADA’s decision to lift the suspension. 

Yet, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the Russian’s “exceptional circumstances” meant she should not be provisionally banned. 

Reaction to this decision has been mixed, with many arguing that CAS’ decision marks a backwards step in the battle to prevent doping offences. 

USA Today columnist Christine Brennan wrote: “CAS decision: Kamila Valieva is allowed to compete. What a dark day this is for the fight against doping in sports.” 

CAS decision: Kamila Valieva is allowed to compete. What a dark day this is for the fight against doping in sports.

However, the teenager has stressed that the positive test was not her fault and was in fact due to coming into contact with her grandad’s medicine. 

The IOC’s Denis Oswald told reporters: “Her argument was this contamination happened with a product her grandfather was taking.” 

Valieva, who was the pre-Games favourite, had been spotted continuing to train amid the ongoing investigation and has now broken her silence. 

The European figure-skating champion told Russia’s Channel One television: “These [past] days have been very difficult for me.

“It