The International Skating Union said Tuesday that Japan’s bronze medal in the figure skating team event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will be upgraded to silver after a Russian skater was disqualified over a doping scandal.
The Russian team will drop from first to third place, and the United States, which finished second in the team event, will now receive gold.
Based on the new results, the International Olympic Committee plans to finally hold a medal awarding ceremony for the team event.
Mitsugi Ogata, head of the Japan Skating Federation, issued a statement on Tuesday saying, “We honor the athletes who gave their all at the Beijing Olympics and hope that the medals will be given to them as soon as possible.”
In the doping scandal, Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance on Dec. 25, 2021. The test result came to light after she competed in the Olympic team event.
On Monday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport decided to impose a four-year ban on her, starting from the date of the drug test.