Father of American figure skater Alysa Liu criticizes Kamila Valieva decision

Among the critics of the decision allowing Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva to continue competing at the Beijing Winter Olympics is the father of the United States’ best female figure skater.

Arthur Liu, father of 16-year-old Alysa Liu, said the decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport to allow Valieva to compete despite having tested positive for a banned substance “destroys the Olympic spirit.” 

“She tested positive for a banned drug. What’s not clear about it? She should be out,” Arthur Liu said, according to The Associated Press. “That is as simple as that. What kind of message are they sending to millions of young boys and girls in sports — particularly figure skaters? That cheaters are allowed to compete in the Olympics, the holiest competition on the planet. It totally destroys the Olympic spirit.” 

Valieva, 15, tested positive for a banned heart medication called trimetazidine. Before her positive test was revealed, she helped lead Russia to gold in the team event, becoming the first woman to land a quad jump in Olympic history. 

In Valieva’s first skate since the controversy began, she took the lead score in the women’s short program on Tuesday, with an 82.16. 

Alysa Liu is one of three Americans competing in the women’s individual event. She is one of only a few American women to ever complete a triple axel in competition. 

Her father told Defector that the sport is “rigged” and pushed back on Valieva’s designation as a minor, which was a key factor the Court of Arbitration for Sport is allowing her to compete. 

“It is going to be very hard for all the clean athletes to see that the Russians are doping and they are going to walk away, run away with all the medals and you can’t do anything about it,” he said. 

“Alysa has been tested since she was 12 or 13 years old and she knows what she is supposed to take and what she’s not supposed to take.”

Arthur Liu was one of many people to speak out against the decision on Monday. Several former American figure skaters disagreed with the decision, including Johnny Weir, who said it’s a “slap in the face to the Olympic Games.”