Russian figure skater Valieva celebrates her 19th birthday, and her godmother is looking forward to her return to the ice

The team of Russian Honorary Coach Eteri Tutberidze recently congratulated Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva on her 19th birthday on April 26 local time. The former coach posted a related post on social media, "Happy birthday to Camila! Wishing you good health and finding inspiration! ”

A recent photo of Kamila Valieva

At the end of January 2024, it was reported that the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) suspended Valieva for four years for violating anti-doping rules, with a suspension date beginning on December 25, 2021, during which she could not train at public skating rinks. As a result of doping, Valieva lost the gold medal in women's single skating at the 2022 European Championships, the silver medal (2022) and bronze medal (2023) at the Russian Championships, the silver medal at the Russian Grand Prix Finals (2023), as well as the awards she received at various stages of the competition. Valieva was also stripped of her individual medal at Beijing 2022, and the Russian national team was downgraded from winning gold in the figure skating team event to a bronze medal at the Games.

Kamila Valieva celebrated her 19th birthday on April 26 local time

Valieva won't be able to compete until December 2025, and in theory, she's not far off making a comeback. In response, former Soviet figure skating honorary coach Tatiana Tarasova recently said that she is waiting for Valieva to return to the ice. "I knew that Camilla wanted to continue her figure skating career," Tarasova said. It would be wonderful if we could see her on the ice."