On 7 August 2026, it was announced that Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was granted Individual Neutral Athlete (AIN) status, which will allow her to compete internationally in the upcoming season, without technically representing a country. This follows a series of announcements across the past week on AIN status being granted to Russian figure skaters.
Under AIN status, athletes will compete without their national flags, anthems or any other state symbols. This is one of the most significant developments regarding Russian figure skating since March 2022. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February that year, the International Skating Union (ISU) suspended Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in ISU organised international events.
For Russian athletes to compete internationally, they must meet three requirements, centred around having no military ties. They consist of no past military service, no public support for the war, and no combat participation. Many online have expressed dissatisfaction which these and the news about Valieva. One comment on TikTok stated: “Kamila getting neutrality is ridiculous,” with another saying, “they will just approve anyone at this point.” However, opinions are divided as another commentor expressed support for Valieva, stating: “it’s sports not politics.”
The recent announcement marks the return of one of figure skating’s most prominent and debated figures, who lit up the media at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games, and changed the course of her own career in doing so.
After a medal-winning performance in the team event, Valieva came to be at the centre of what is now referred to as “the Doping scandal.” A sample, which the then 15-year-old Valieva submitted for a drug test the previous December, came back positive for the banned substance Trimetazidine, used to treat chest conditions. Consequently, Valieva was subjected to a four-year ban on international competition, which she is now free of. The doping scandal was a defining moment of Valieva’s career.
There was disparate response to the doping scandal, the four-year ban and the discussions surrounding it in Russia compared to the rest of the world. Western media in particular was critical of the coaches and the team which had allowed a 15-year-old girl to end up in this situation. The president of the international Olympic committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, stated: “I was very disturbed when I watched the competition on TV — when I afterwards saw how she was received by her closest entourage with what appeared to be tremendous coolness — it was chilling to see this.”
A Kremlin official stated in defence: “[Bach] does not like the toughness of our coaches, but everyone knows that in elite sports, the coach’s toughness is key to the students’ victories.” Upon arriving back in Russia, Valieva was greeted by a hundred fans and a military band at the airport.
It was the ISU who made the decision to allow her to return to the competitive international circuit. Founded in 1892, it is the international governing body for all competitive Ice-Skating disciplines. This includes figure skating, Ice dancing, speed skating and more. Despite being an international organisation, the ISU has not always been neutral. It has a history of political allegiance and division. For example, during the Cold War (1947 – 1989), there was an eastern western Bloc in Judges voting. To this day, many accuse the judges of biasing different skaters and countries.
Figure skating in Russia is unique for being largely state funded. In what is perhaps an echo of the country’s Soviet era (when Soviets dominated the sport), a lot of money is poured into the discipline. This has been amped up in the past decades, especially in the years preceding the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Kuhne (2025) argues that: “the state-funded coaching system provides a level of state intervention few other skaters internationally are offered —but the system requires payment in kind, often in the forms of appearances at military events or propaganda shows.” This system continues to this day. Many of the athletes (including Valieva) who have received neutral status grew up and trained under this system. So to what extent does stating that an athlete is neutral and not allowing them to sing their national anthem actually impact the way they represent their country?
Valieva has been publicly connected to the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin for several years. This dates back to the 2022 Doping Scandal when Putin was supportive of the figure skater. At a 2024 event, Valieva publicly thanked the president for “his support, for such attention, it is worth a lot.”
The skater has been present at state events, being sat next to Putin and receiving awards from him and performing at state run events. As of 8 August 2026, she has a picture of her standing beside Putin pinned on her Instagram. Furthermore, in December 2022, Valieva was allegedly listed as one of 56 athletes who the Ukrainian Government accused of supporting the war. Valieva has never made direct allusions to her support for the war and none of the facts we have about her confirm that she supports it. However, there is a question to be asked given the strong connection between figure skating and the state of Russia, and how fully the two can be separated. The ISU has determined that she meets the requirements for neutral athlete status. However, the extent to which she is actually neutral is being questioned. The discussion raises the question of what it means to be a neutral athlete in 2026, especially given the high levels of conflict and divide across the globe? It is hard to say how Valieva’s time on the competition circuit will play out over the next year, especially given she has been absent from international events for so long. However, figure skating and politics have always been intertwined, and this is no exception. Valieva has been at the centre of controversy before and it seems she may be again.
“Figure Skating Queen YUNA KIM” by { QUEEN YUNA } is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.
