Olympic skater's fall ignites fire from fellow Russians — sympathy from Olympians

Fifteen year old skater Russian Kamila Valieva, who arrived at the Winter Olympics as the "child prodigy" of figure skating, is leaving Beijing broken after not being able to overcome the pressure and falling in the final of the free program. Valieva, who initially won a gold for the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), a medal that has not yet been awarded due to her doping scandal, had a fall in the individual final that left her off the podium.

Her teammate Anna Shcherbakova, the world champion who had gone unnoticed after the 15-year-old's breakthrough, executed a flawless free routine to take the gold medal. Overwhelmed by pressure, Valieva was left without a medal after a series of mistakes ended her Olympic dream.

Shcherbakova completed both of her quad jumps and received 255.95 points, to edge another compatriot, Alexandra Trusova, who executed five shaky quad jumps took home the silver medal.

Despite their victories, both Shcherbakova and Trusova were distraught about their performances -- the gold medalist saying she felt "emptiness inside" and the silver medalist implying she never wanted to skate again. 

"I hate this sport," Trusova was heard shouting. "I won’t go onto the ice again."

Japanese skater Kaori Sakamoto, who nabbed the bronze was the only athlete of the four who did not seem disappointed. Her third place win prevented Russia from filling the Olympic podium.

Skating stumble —

Russian skater Kamila Valieva finishes fourth at the #Olympics, amid her drugs controversy.

"To her credit, she picked herself up and carried on, but finished her routine in tears," @AmandaDCNN reports on @firstmove pic.twitter.com/FHQDdLTxu7

— Julia Chatterley (@jchatterleyCNN) February 17, 2022

Valieva was reportedly inconsolable over her finish. Once the great favorite, the skater is now without a medal and instead facing a doping investigation that has yet to be resolved. The medals will be awarded this Friday, a ceremony that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had warned would not take place if she were among the top three.

Valieva has not yet given a statement to the press after her performance, but the international press and some Olympics committee members took notice to how her coach and teammates treated her with "coldness" after her fall.

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach came to the young skater's defense, criticizing "the tremendous coldness" towards the Russian figure skater by her team. Bach said he felt "very disturbed" when he saw what he described as "gestures of disapproval" by the young Russian's team.

“Rather than giving her comfort, rather than to try to help her, you could feel this chilling atmosphere, this distance... This was no way to treat a 15-year-old girl under such mental stress," the IOC president said.

Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko said Bach’s comments were “inappropriate and wrong.”

“We are deeply disappointed to see an IOC president weave his own fictional narrative on the feelings of our athletes, and then present these publicly as the voice of the IOC,” he said. “Everyone recognizes the Olympics as the pinnacle of professional sport, and every single athlete bears the hopes and dreams of their entire nation for their success. That is a known pressure, and it is also what drives them forward, with a fighting spirit. Win or lose we know our athletes are world-beating, and they do too.”

Katarina Witt, a two-time German gold medalist Olympic skater apparently felt differently. She broke down in tears on live television about Russia's treatment of Valieva's, insisting that  was only 15-years old and deserved better.  

“What has happened is exactly what she should have been protected from,” Witt said during a television interview. “She is 15. She’s a child. I’m sorry. When you see her sitting there, shattered …”

The former gold medalist collapsed into tears, but struggled to continue, adding that, “she was a shadow of herself. She couldn’t win in this whole game whether she had skated perfectly and became Olympic champion. Yes, it would have been debated, but what has now happened is the absolute worst.”