Attorneys for Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva are challenging her doping case, claiming that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) suppressed and modified evidence that could have supported her contamination defense during the hearing that resulted in her four-year suspension.
The experiment conducted by scientist Martial Saugy, commissioned by Russia’s anti-doping agency (RUSADA) through WADA, was kept secret until The Associated Press revealed its details last September. Saugy’s experiment suggested that Valieva could have been contaminated by drinking a strawberry smoothie her grandfather made, but this information was not presented during her 2023 hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
After learning about the experiment from an AP story, Valieva’s team filed an appeal with the Swiss Supreme Court, demanding the experiment details be made public. WADA eventually provided the report, which Saugy used to examine how the drug Trimetazidine could have ended up in Valieva’s system. Saugy concluded that contamination through the smoothie could be plausible under certain conditions.
Her lawyers argue that WADA’s failure to disclose the experiment during the CAS hearing, and the altered version of the report that was eventually released, amounted to “procedural fraud.” They claim WADA did not allow Saugy to be cross-examined during the hearing and deliberately withheld his favourable findings.
WADA spokesman James Fitzgerald rejected any wrongdoing, stating that the report was not WADA’s to share and would not have impacted the outcome of the case. “The report was not helpful to Ms. Valieva’s case and, anyway, would have had no impact on the result,” he said, pointing to the CAS panel’s rejection of Valieva’s explanation due to insufficient evidence.
Valieva, who was part of Russia’s gold medal-winning team at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, had her result scrubbed due to the doping violation. Her suspension ends in late 2025, and reports suggest she plans to return to competition for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics.
The drug Trimetazidine, which also appeared in the systems of 23 Chinese swimmers who were not penalised after presenting a contamination defense, has been central to Valieva’s case. Critics have pointed out inconsistencies in how WADA handled the same drug in different countries, with accusations of favouritism.
The controversy is rooted in Russia’s long-standing issues with doping, and the involvement of RUSADA, which was non-compliant at the time of Valieva’s case. WADA had received Saugy’s experiment results after it was funnelled through the agency, sparking concerns within WADA about its potential use in the court case.
“If it is a RUSADA opinion, we should absolutely not be involved in anyway,” WADA director general Olivier Niggli wrote in internal communications. “This is a big issue on our side to get involved in such an opinion that will be used in court.”
