The International Olympic Committee is responding to American track and field athlete Sha’Carri Richardson’s claims of a double standard after Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was allowed to compete at the Olympics following a positive drug test, unlikeher own experience.
During apress briefingWednesday, IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said the two incidents cannot be compared.
For more on Kamila Valieva, listen below toour daily podcast on PEOPLE Every Day.
“I would suggest that there isn’t a great deal of similarity between the two cases,” he added.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Additionally, Adams told reporters that the IOC is focused on the well being of Valieva during this “tough” time.
“She is in the center of a lot of speculation,” Adamssaid. “It must be very tough for her. We, of course, are in touch with the team, her welfare is the team’s first priority, and obviously we are very careful of that but there’s only so much that we can do.”
Sha’Carri Richardson (left) and Kamila Valieva.Taylor Hill/WireImage; LAURIE DIEFFEMBACQ/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty
On Monday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced that the 15-year-old figure skatercould competein the short program of the women’s skating competition on Tuesday. Valieva’s participation in the event came into question after it was revealed she reportedlytested positivefor the banned substanceTrimetazidine, a heart medication, in December.
Richardson, 21, won the women’s 100m race at the U.S. Olympic track and field trials last summer. However, she lost her spot on Team USA after she tested positive for THC, a chemical in marijuana, following the trials. Because of the decision, she was unable to compete at the Tokyo Olympics. A different organization than CAS, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), handled Richardson’s testing and suspension.
Richardson first made claims of a double standard in the decision to allow Valieva to compete earlier this week. Tweeting in response to a news article about Valieva, Richardson wrote, “Can we get a solid answer on the difference of her situation and mines [sic]? My mother died and I can’t run and was also favored to place top 3. The only difference I see is I’m a black young lady.”
“It’s all in the skin,” she wrote in a separate tweet, then added, “Btw THC definitely is not a performance enhance!!!!!”
She continued, tweeting, “Failed in December and the world just now know however my result was posted within a week and my name & talent was slaughtered to the people.”
Wrote Richardson in a further tweet, “Not one BLACK athlete has been about to compete with a case going on, I don’t care what they say.”
“It is the collective responsibility of the entire Olympic community to protect the integrity of sports and to hold our athletes, coaches and all involved to the highest of standards,” said Hirshland.
Valieva ultimately did not medal in the women’s singles event, finishing in fourth place after an uncharacteristically mistake-ridden performance.
To learn more about Team USA, visitTeamUSA.org. Watch the Winter Olympics, now, and the Paralympics, beginning March 4, on NBC.
source: people.com
