Italian figure skater Nicole Della Monica, who performs in pairs with Matteo Guarise, expressed heartfelt sympathy for the Russian competitor Kamila Valieva amid the doping scandal. Her remarks set a compassionate tone in a complex moment for the sport and its young athletes. The sentiment comes as observers weigh the pressures faced by a skater drawn into a high stakes controversy and the intense scrutiny that follows every move on the ice.
“I truly regret the current situation because it is very difficult to endure something like this. It is unfortunate that journalists and the public focus so intensely on a young athlete who stands at the center of this storm. Consider that she was only 15 when these events unfolded. This reality is deeply sad,” Della Monica stated.
The controversy surrounding Valieva erupted during the 2022 Winter Olympics. The day after Russia secured victory in the team event with Valieva on the roster, news broke that a banned substance, trimetazidine, had been detected in her doping test. The revelation prompted postponement of the medal ceremony and the temporary halt of any awards in the team competition while investigations proceeded.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport conducted an on-site hearing and subsequently permitted Valieva to compete in the individual event under the condition that no medal ceremony would be held if she finished on the podium. Valieva led after the short program but faced a series of errors in the free program, which ultimately resulted in her placing fourth overall.
The initial CAS hearings on the Valieva case took place in September and then again in November. A final decision was anticipated to be announced on January 29. The process drew widespread attention and generated debate about fairness, the treatment of young athletes, and the standards applied in Olympic sport investigations. The evolving narrative also raised questions about how teams, sponsors, and national federations respond when a single skater becomes the focus of global media scrutiny.
In parallel, discussions within the political sphere examined why administrative bodies pause final judgments in high profile cases and how these delays affect athletes, teams, and fans. Analysts noted that each step in the CAS process shapes public perception and can influence the careers of those involved long after the legal conclusions are reached.