By “scandal” Majorov means the biggest scandal at the previous Winter Games in Beijing in 2022, when he himself competed in the men’s singles.
The focus of the sports world then came to the Russian world record holder Kamila Valieva, who at the age of 15 was the first to complete a quadruple competition at the Olympic Games and won the team competition for Russia.
That is, before she fasted during a drug test.
Valieva was disqualified and her point deduction meant the Russian team dropped to bronze. She was allowed to take part in the subsequent women’s individual competition partly because of her young age, but was later retroactively banned for four years and was unable to qualify for the Olympic Games in Milan.
Here on site In Italy, however, is her former coach Eteri Tutberidze, who escaped a ban because the international anti-doping agency Wada was never able to prove that she was involved in her mentee’s doping offense.
Nevertheless, WADA chairman Witold Banka said a few days ago that he was “uncomfortable” with their presence in Milan – and he may have had reason to do so in many other contexts in recent years.
– It’s fun that people say she’s “back.” She was back at the Olympics a week after the scandal. She was there at all the competitions, says Nikolaj Majorov, who switched to ice dancing and is taking part in the Olympic Games with his girlfriend Milla Ruud Reitan.
He continues:
– It’s not an unusual face for us figure skaters.
Many people probably remember it Tutberidze’s treatment of Valieva in connection with the women’s singles in Beijing. After a few turbulent days, the Russian failed in the free program and fell several times. She finished fourth and the first thing Tutberidze said to her when she got off the ice crying was: “Why did you stop fighting?”
The then president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, did not hold back after seeing the television images that made him very uncomfortable.
– It was frightening to see how she was received with what seemed to be enormous coldness by those closest to her, instead of comforting and helping her, he said.
Perhaps Tutberidze has digested the criticism.
The 51-year-old was born in Russia but is of Georgian descent and this time she is Olympic accredited for Georgia. Among others, she trains Nika Egadze, who had no luck in the men’s free skate in the team competition on Sunday evening.
The newly crowned European champion ended up in last place and was visibly disappointed while waiting for the points. Sitting next to him was, among others, Eteri Tutberidze – who this time comforted and patted his skater.
Meanwhile, Tutberidze Coach of the Russian champion Adeliia Petrosian, who competes in Milan as a “neutral” athlete and is one of the favorites in the women’s singles.
The 18-year-old Petrosian is a product of Tutberidze’s Sambo 70 figure skating academy in Moscow, where the coach made a name for himself by training Russian talent to become international champions.
Tutberidze has repeatedly denied doping allegations and stressed that the welfare of skaters is her top priority, but the latter is controversial.
Their rigorous training methods include a ban on drinking and eating so that riders are lightweight and can complete multiple laps in the air. Many of the active participants had to stop playing sports at a young age, often due to skeletal and overuse injuries, but also due to psychological exhaustion.
In a Radiosport documentary three years ago, two-time world champion and Olympic silver medalist Yevgenia Medvedeva was said to have been knocked over by Tutberidze after a training error and then dragged his student across the ice.
Nikolai Majorov took part in the documentary and said he would never train with Tutberidze. As soon as you enter an ice rink, you can tell whether the coach is there or not, he says. You don’t even have to see them.
What did you think back then?
– I don’t know how to explain it, but if you saw her live off the ice, she has a straight back, she is tall and dressed in a way… you can see that she is a lady who is kind of good with money. You just know she’s there.
– They associate her with her three Russian skaters. She walks in front like the mother and then the children come running behind. There was a new cluster, and then came the next and the next.
For Majorov and Milla Ruud Reitan, it’s no big deal that Tutberidze is in Milan. Nor that the Russians will be allowed to compete again after the invasion of Ukraine, as they still appear to be competing for other nations.
– If you take Georgia for example, most of the people are Russian. If you look at American couples, there are also Russian names among the American gentlemen. They are still everywhere. It is Russia that is known for figure skating and world domination, says Majorov, adding:
– When they closed, there were a lot of people who knew what was going to happen and that they would skip if given the opportunity.
As far as the case with Kamila Valieva is concerned, one positive consequence, says Majorov, is that the debate about elite investments in children has intensified – and that the age limit was raised from 15 to 17 years after the Beijing Olympics.
– Personally, I think an 18-year limit is absolutely right. Then you are considered an adult, you can go to a bar, drive a car and then, in my opinion, you should take full responsibility for the sport, he says.
Read more:
The Russian teenager is trying to make a fresh start after the Olympic scandal
