OLYMPICS: Figure skating-ISU statement follows controversy over Russian coach at Milano Olympics

MILAN – The International Skating Union (ISU) issued a statement on Monday after Russian figure skating coach Eteri Tutberidze attended a practice session with neutral athlete Adeliia Petrosian, sparking questions over her presence.

Tutberidze, whose coaching methods have been closely scrutinized since the 2022 Beijing Olympics, previously coached Kamila Valieva, the Russian skater at the center of a doping controversy. Tutberidze was not found guilty of any offense by WADA and faced no sanctions related to Valieva’s positive test.

Now coaching Georgia’s European men’s champion Nika Egadze, Tutberidze received Olympic accreditation through Georgia. Her presence at Petrosian’s Sunday training session prompted the ISU to clarify that athlete eligibility and supervision at the Olympics are under the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) jurisdiction.

“Based on IOC guidelines applying to Russian and Belarusian passport holders, the ISU was among the first winter sports federations to allow a limited number of independent neutral athletes (AINs) to compete under strict conditions,” the ISU said. “An ISU-constituted AIN Review Committee formed a robust series of protocols for the screening of proposed athletes and their support personnel… The Olympic Winter Games and related rules are the responsibility of the IOC.”

Petrosian, 18, is competing as a neutral athlete due to Russia’s ban from international sports over its invasion of Ukraine. The teenager has competed in just one senior event outside Russia in the past two years—the Olympic qualifying event in Beijing, which earned her a spot in Milan.

She will compete in the women’s short program on Tuesday and the free program on Thursday. A victory in Milan would make her the fourth consecutive Olympic women’s champion trained within the Russian system, following Adelina Sotnikova (2014), Alina Zagitova (2018), and Anna Shcherbakova (2022).

Shcherbakova’s Beijing win, however, was overshadowed by Valieva’s positive drugs test. Valieva, 15 at the time, became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at an Olympics during the team event, helping Russia claim gold. Weeks later, she tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine at the Russian national championships in December 2021, leading to a four-year ban starting from that date and the stripping of Russia’s team gold medal.

Tutberidze faced criticism after she was seen scolding a crying Valieva following a poor free skate, where the young athlete fell multiple times. The ISU later raised the minimum senior competition age from 15 to 17.

Tutberidze’s presence in Milan has drawn further attention. WADA President Witold Banka said on February 5 that while the coach was legally allowed at the Games, he personally felt uneasy about her presence.

“WADA did not accredit the coach. It is not our decision,” Banka said. “An investigation found no evidence that this particular person engaged in a doping process, so there is no legal basis to exclude her from the Olympic Games. But, of course, personally, I don’t feel comfortable with her here.”

-Reporting by Lori Ewing; editing by Pritha Sarkar/Reuters