More than two years after missing out on gold medals due to an opponent’s doping, the U.S. Olympic figure skating team has finally received its medals.
Figure skaters from the United States and Japan stood on the podium at the Parc des Champions in Paris on Wednesday to accept the gold and silver medals they won at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
At the time, Russia won the gold medal in the event, thanks in large part to the efforts of 15-year-old Kamila Valieva, who became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics.
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Russian Olympic Committee athlete Kamila Valieva reacts during the women’s team free skating program during the figure skating competition at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Monday, February 7, 2022. (AP Photo/David J. Phillips)
However, Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a banned substance used to prevent angina, at the Russian National Championships in December 2021, with the results of her test only made public the day after the team final in Beijing. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) then decided that no medals would be officially awarded in the figure skating team event until Valieva’s issue was resolved.
Olympians had to wait nearly two years to find out what medals they would receive.
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The team released a statement on Instagram on Feb. 2, 2023, saying the players were “deeply disappointed that no final decision has been made regarding team competition.”
“They have long ago deserved the recognition that was denied to them due to the ongoing process,” the statement continued. “US Figure Skating seeks fair and appropriate adjudication to ensure that all clean athletes affected by this situation receive their rightful medals.”
Nathan Chen of Team USA reacts during the men’s singles skating short program team event at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing, China on February 4, 2022. (Elsa/Getty Images)
It was only in January this year that Valieva was found guilty of doping and the Republic of China was stripped of its gold medal from the event. Following Valieva’s disqualification, the International Skating Union demoted the Russian team from gold to bronze, while the United States was promoted from silver to gold and Japan from bronze to silver.
Then I had to wait another seven months before I could actually attend the official awards ceremony, which by that point was already nearly two years late.
Members of the U.S. Olympic figure skating team pose for a photograph after accepting their gold medals following the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, following the disqualification of the Russian team for doping, at Champions Park in Paris. (Michael Reeves/Getty Images)
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But this week, all Americans were able to celebrate their belated medal wins.
Madison Chock, Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Zachary Donahue, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Alexa Knierim and Vincent Zhou were able to attend a revised awards ceremony in Paris on Wednesday, cheered on by 13,000 fans.
“It was like a dream. I got my medal, I turned around and I could see the Eiffel Tower and I was just blown away,” Chock said at the event. “It took my breath away.”
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