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Russia's Valieva trains before Olympics decision

Hosts: Beijing, China Dates: 4-20 February
Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Red Button and online; listen on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds; live text and highlights on BBC Sport website and mobile app

Russian teenage figure skater Kamila Valieva was training in Beijing on Sunday as she awaits her Winter Olympics fate.

The 15-year-old, who failed a drugs test in December, will hear on Monday if she can compete in the individual event in Beijing and if she is being stripped of team gold.

A hearing is set for Sunday at 12:30 GMT and a Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) panel will then decide whether to suspend her, with the women’s singles starting on Tuesday.

“We want this to be expedited as quickly as possible and you will have a resolution on Monday,” said International Olympic Committee (IOC) spokesman Mark Adams.

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“We want a very, very quick resolution.”

The IOC says the Cas hearing will only be about the lifting of Valieva’s provisional suspension, which was imposed by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (Rusada).

The full case will be heard by Rusada because the drug test was at a national competition, but the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) can appeal against any decision.

Valieva returned a positive test for the banned substance trimetazidine at the Russian Figure Skating Championships on 25 December.

But it was only reported on 8 February, the day after she became the first female skater to land a quadruple jump at an Olympics to help the Russian Olympic Committee team win gold.

When the issue came to light, the medal ceremony was postponed at short notice.

The medals for the team event – in which the United States finished second, Japan third and Canada fourth – will not be awarded until the outcome of the hearing.

In an interview with Russian state television, Valieva’s coach Eteri Tutberidze said she was certain the teenager was “clean and innocent”.

Trimetazidine is used in the prevention of angina attacks but is on the banned list because it is classed as a cardiac metabolic modulator and has been proven to improve physical efficiency.

Valieva is allowed to train after a successful challenge against her provisional suspension by Rusada.

She is the favourite to win and was flawless in training on Sunday, landing her quadruple jumps.

But the IOC, (Wada) and the International Skating Union (ISU) have now appealed to Cas against Rusada’s decision to allow her to continue.

The Cas panel will consist of president Fabio Iudica of Italy and arbitrators Jeffrey Benz, of the United States, and Slovenian Vesna Bergant Rakocevic.

“The panel has issued procedural directions to the parties including the holding of a hearing by video conference on Sunday, 13 February at 8:30pm (Beijing time),” Cas said in a statement on Saturday.

It added: “Following the hearing, the panel will deliberate and prepare the arbitral award containing its decision. It is anticipated that the decision will be notified to the parties in the afternoon of Monday, 14 February.”

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