February 2022. Beijing, China. It is the ultimate day of the Olympic girls’s determine skating competitors, however the temper is way from celebratory.
The slate of applications has simply wrapped up. The Russian federation was anticipating a podium sweep, nevertheless it’s not going to get one. Its presumed gold medalist, 15-year-old phenom Kamila Valieva, is hunched over together with her head in her fingers. She fell twice in her lengthy program to plummet into fourth place, and he or she did it whereas struggling by way of the brunt a worldwide doping scandal. Various parties alleged that Valieva entered the Video games utilizing unlawful performance-enhancing substances, and people events will ultimately be proved appropriate.
Valieva is a baby. Her coaches, not her, are liable for the medicine being put in her physique. However right here she is, actually and figuratively taking the autumn, whereas her teaching workforce stands impassive behind her.
Valieva’s two teammates, Alexandra Trusova and Anna Shcherbakova, do handle to make the rostrum, however not within the order they anticipated to. Shcherbakova takes gold with a candy, completely executed lengthy program, whereas Trusova takes silver with an athletically bold different. Trusova is furious. She was promised a better seeding than she ended up getting, and he or she’s screaming at their shared coach with mascara working down her face.
“I hate skating,” she sobs. “I hate it. I hate this sport. I’ll by no means skate once more. By no means.”
Shcherbakova, in the meantime, is on their own within the winner’s chair on the alternative facet of the rink. She’s staring into space like she’s disassociating from a horror movie. Nobody involves congratulate her, save shock bronze medalist Kaori Sakamoto of Japan, who by no means anticipated to get close to the rostrum whereas Russia was busy throttling it. Sakamoto is the one lady within the constructing with something resembling a smile on her face.
