Winter Olympics: Russian doping scandal shines light on Kamila Valieva’s notoriously strict coach who breeds winners
- No suggestion that Eteri Tutberidze has done anything wrong, but case has brought renewed scrutiny of her methods
- The 47-year-old has trained up a team of brilliant young skaters tasked with winning gold in Beijing
The coaching team surrounding Kamila Valieva has come under fierce scrutiny after the 15-year-old Russian figure skater was engulfed by a doping controversy at the Beijing Olympics – and none more so than Eteri Tutberidze.
After it was confirmed Friday that Valieva had failed a drugs test and could be kicked out of the Games, the hashtag “shame on Tutberidze” began trending on Twitter in Russia.
Russia’s anti-doping agency RUSADA said that “an investigation has been initiated into the athlete’s staff”.
It did not name the 47-year-old Tutberidze and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing on her behalf, but it brings renewed focus on the notoriously strict methods of a coach who has trained up a team of brilliant young skaters tasked with winning gold in Beijing.
Valieva and her 17-year-old teammates Alexandra Trusova and Anna Shcherbakova, who are also Tutberidze’s proteges, had been expected to dominate the women’s singles – one of the Games’ most prestigious and scrutinised events.
“It would be great if all three medals were ours,” Tutberidze told Russia’s Channel One network in late December.
Tutberidze has been dubbed Russia’s “Snow Queen” for her icy demeanour and no-nonsense coaching style.