Valieva takes No. 1 slot in a figure skating event that's clouded by doping saga

Valieva takes No. 1 slot in a figure skating event that's clouded by doping saga¹

Transcript²

BEIJING — The 30 skaters taking the ice for the women's Olympic figure skating short program Tuesday were competing under a cloud, because of one person's presence: Russian star Kamila Valieva.

The 15-year-old's positive test for a banned drug before the Olympics has thrown these Games into disarray³.

After days of scrutiny⁴ and intense pressure because of the revelations, the teenager executed a first-place performance. Valieva scored 82.16, despite a stumble on her first triple axel — the hardest triple-rotation jump.

Valieva appeared to be overcome with emotion as the audience gave her the longest applause of the night at the end of her routine.

Anna Shcherbakova and Alexandra Trusova, also of the Russian Olympic Committee, took second and fourth place, respectively. Their performances give the ROC a solid chance at a podium finish later this week.

The night's final skater, Japan's Kaori Sakamoto, edged her way into third place.

The stadium was roughly half full Tuesday night, with some local Chinese spectators in the stands. But most people in the seats were media and small (but mighty) contingents⁵ from the athlete's country.

A robust⁶ group of German teammates and officials cheered on skater Nicole Schott with a large inflated⁷ pretzel. Schott, who landed in 14th place at the end of the night, cemented her place in the next round. It's unclear whether the pretzel balloon might have buoyed⁸ her efforts.

U.S. skaters Alysa Liu, Mariah Bell, and Karen Chen, finished eighth, 11th, and 13th, respectively. The final phase in the women's singles competition is Thursday's free skate.

Skaters performed after days of distractions⁹

The competition was shrouded¹⁰ in controversy¹¹ after news that Valieva tested positive for a heart drug called trimetazidine. The drug can boost athletes' endurance and blood efficiency. She provided a sample last December but the positive result wasn't revealed until last week - after she helped propel the Russian team to a gold medal in the team competition.

The Court of Arbitration¹² for Sport ruled on Monday that Valieva should be allowed to keep competing at the Olympics. "Preventing the athlete to compete at the Olympic Games would cause her irreparable harm in these circumstances," said CAS director general Matthieu Reeb at a press conference, noting that her young age made the case particularly sensitive. Under the World Anti-Doping Code, she is considered a "protected person."

Most other skaters declined to talk much about Valieva after their performances.

"It's not easy being here," said the U.S.'s Bell, 25, describing the pressure of the Winter Games. She also voiced concern for Valieva: "It's a tough situation for everyone. She's young."

In the lead-up to the event, many skaters said they avoided social media and the news of Valieva, and focused on their own work as much as they could.

Olga Mikutina of Austria said, "I concentrated on myself and it didn't matter what was going on around me." Mikutina placed 18th.

Some athletes said they arrived wanting to have fun and hoped to ignore the firestorm.

"It's one time in four years, for me it was my first time," said Lindsay van Zundert of the Netherlands who was laughing and joking with reporters after her performance.

She said, "I just wanted to enjoy it and give it everything I had. It's just me, my skates and my program and nothing else." She ended the night in 22nd place.

Some skaters question allowing Valieva to skate

The Valieva controversy has reshaped the women's figure skating competition.

The best 25 skaters after the short program will advance to Thursday's free skate. Traditionally the qualification rule of the short program means that only the best 24 skaters move on. The extra skater was added to Thursday's free skate lineup so that enough people can compete and get a fair shot, if Valieva is later disqualified.

"It was the right decision, I think, because if anything does come up, then that person has their place to skate," British skater Natasha McKay said of the IOC's decision to expand the number of qualifiers. McKay was speaking to reporters after her event.

She said broadly of the Valieva case, "I wish it would be [a] level playing field, but it's not. But they've [CAS and the IOC] made the decision that they've made and I can't do anything about it."

Asked whether Valieva should've been skating in this event, Mikutina of Austria said that decision must be made by other people. "Of course it's important for every athlete to compete against each other clean," she said.

NPR's Russell Lewis contributed to this story.

1 saga   

n.(尤指中世纪北欧海盗的)故事，英雄传奇

参考例句：

• The saga of Flight 19 is probably the most repeated story about the Bermuda Triangle.飞行19中队的传说或许是有关百慕大三角最重复的故事。
• The novel depicts the saga of a family.小说描绘了一个家族的传奇故事。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 disarray   

n.混乱，紊乱，凌乱

参考例句：

• His personal life fell into disarray when his wife left him.妻子离去后，他的个人生活一片混乱。
• Our plans were thrown into disarray by the rail strike.铁路罢工打乱了我们的计划。

4 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

5 contingents   

（志趣相投、尤指来自同一地方的）一组与会者( contingent的名词复数 )； 代表团； （军队的）分遣队； 小分队

参考例句：

• We were forced to rely on French contingents. 我们势必被迫依恃法国驻军。
• The internal security forces are composed of contingents and mobile divisions. 内卫部队由各总队和机动师组成。

6 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

7 inflated   

adj.（价格）飞涨的；（通货）膨胀的；言过其实的；充了气的v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨

参考例句：

• He has an inflated sense of his own importance. 他自视过高。
• They all seem to take an inflated view of their collective identity. 他们对自己的集体身份似乎都持有一种夸大的看法。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 buoyed   

v.使浮起( buoy的过去式和过去分词 )；支持；为…设浮标；振奋…的精神

参考例句：

• Buoyed by their win yesterday the team feel confident of further success. 在昨天胜利的鼓舞下，该队有信心再次获胜。
• His encouragement buoyed her up during that difficult period. 他的鼓励使她在那段困难时期恢复了乐观的情绪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 distractions   

n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱

参考例句：

• I find it hard to work at home because there are too many distractions. 我发觉在家里工作很难，因为使人分心的事太多。
• There are too many distractions here to work properly. 这里叫人分心的事太多，使人无法好好工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 shrouded   

v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密

参考例句：

• The hills were shrouded in mist . 这些小山被笼罩在薄雾之中。
• The towers were shrouded in mist. 城楼被蒙上薄雾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

12 arbitration   

n.调停，仲裁

参考例句：

• The wage disagreement is under arbitration.工资纠纷正在仲裁中。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding.双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。