Moscow believes that a ‘misunderstanding’ is behind the current controversy regarding Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva at the 2022 Winter Olympics in China, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.
"We are confident that this is all about some misunderstanding," Peskov told journalists at a daily news briefing. "Our sports officials have specific questions to ask about the timeframe of Valieva’s doping test sample results. We are keeping a track of these questions and concerns on behalf of our sports officials."
Peskov said that the Kremlin "refuses to make any comments on the issue" and is waiting for the investigation to be completed.
The press secretary also stated that there are no questions whatsoever in regard to Russian sports officials, as they are "doing their job."
Peskov reiterated the Kremlin’s strong support for Kamila Valieva and encouraged her to hold her head high and continue triumphing over her opponents on the ice. Valieva left this morning’s training session in Beijing covering her face in her hoodie.
"…we absolutely support Kamila Valieva and call on everyone else to do the same," Peskov urged. "Our message to Kamila is - don’t hide your face, you are a Russian, keep on walking proudly and most importantly, keep skating and beating everyone."
Earlier in the day, the International Testing Agency announced that a test taken from Valieva in December 2021 during the Russian Figure Skating Championships in St. Petersburg turned out to be positive. This triggered the postponement of the awarding ceremony of Olympic team tournament, won by Russia.
