Controversial ROC figure skater Kamila Valieva, whose doping case and personal drama dominated the Beijing Winter Olympics, has thanked her coaches and supporters on social media following the end of the Games.
Valieva, who failed a drug test back in December — the result of which was not known until February — was allowed to skate in Beijing after a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
This meant the 15-year-old spent the entire Games in the spotlight, culminating in her final free skate in the women's competition.
Going into the routine as the gold medal favourite, Valieva could not maintain her composure, producing a number of errors, including two falls to drop her from medal contention.
The ROC skater broke down at the finish of her routine — footage showed that as she came off the ice, her coach Eteri Tutuberidze criticised her and asked "why did you stop fighting?" after her attempted triple axel.
Then, while sitting in the "kiss and cry" area waiting for her scores, a distressed Valieva could be seen breaking down again.
This prompted comments from IOC president Thomas Bach, who said it was "chilling" to see Valieva's treatment from those around her, including her coach.
"When I afterwards saw how she was received by her closest entourage with what appeared to be a tremendous coldness, it was chilling to see this, rather than giving her comfort, rather than to try to help her," Bach said.
"All of this does not give me much confidence in this closest entourage of Kamila, neither with regard to what happened in the past, nor as far as it concerns the future.
"How to deal, how to address, how to treat a minor athlete at the age of 15 under such an obvious mental stress."
Days after her return to Moscow following the Winter Olympics, Valieva put out two posts on Instagram.
The first post expressed her gratitude to everyone for those who were with her during a "tough period", including to fans, family and friends, coaches, her team and country.
"THANK YOU ALL!!! I AM FOREVER GRATEFUL!!! I will always remember this, be grateful to you and skate for you," she posted.
Then she sent a second message name-checking her coaches and thanking them.
"My first Olympiad is finally over, and I want to thank those who led me to this most important event in the life of an athlete — my coaches: Eteri Georgievna @tutberidze.eteri , Sergey Viktorovich, Daniil Markovich @daniil_gleikhengauz.
"You are absolute masters in your field! And you not only train, but also teach to overcome yourself, which helps not only in sports, but also in life.
Valieva is still waiting for her "B" sample to be revealed after she tested positive to the banned heart medication trimetazidine.
The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) is investigating her case, as is the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
