Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, 15, competes during the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games.
Where’s Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva? In February 2022, during the Beijing Winter Games, I wrote a column saying, “I have never wanted a 15-year-old to fail so much in my life. But when (Valieva) executed her short program … that’s exactly what her team’s handling of her positive drug test had reduced me to – a spiteful fan who loved her during the pre-Olympics competitions but now feels betrayed. … Russia grabbed gold, the USA earned silver and Japan won bronze.”
Olympics diversity: Would you call Olympic gold medalists Simone Biles or Suni Lee a ‘DEI hire’?
As USA TODAY Sports columnist Christine Brennan wrote this past week: “The Russian scandal … forced the original medal ceremony to be canceled and triggered an infuriating series of international delays and appeals, finally ending with a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruling less than two weeks ago.” On Wednesday, the 2022 U.S. Olympic figure skating team ‒ including “Rocketman” Nathan Chen ‒ finally got their gold medals and the Japanese skaters got their silver, all surrounded by their loved ones at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.
But what about Valieva? Now two years older but still a teenager, did she watch the medal ceremony somewhere? What is she up to? Who does she blame for losing gold?
Olympics gender equality vs. gender-blind sports
How long before gender-parity Olympics lead to gender-neutral Games? Paris witnessed the first-ever Olympics to reach gender parity. In 2016, as the Summer Games wrapped up in Rio de Janeiro, I co-wrote an editorial advocating, “Let men and women compete head-to-head in shooting.”
Josh Rivera and I reasoned: “For decades, men and women shooters competed against each other in international events. At the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, American Margaret Thompson Murdock tied for first with teammate Lanny Bassham in the small-bore rifle competition. After the judges examined the targets, they awarded the gold medal to the man and the silver to the woman. To Bassham’s credit, he asked Murdock to share the top podium with him as the national anthem played.
“After that, the International Olympic Committee phased out mixed-gender shooting and created events just for women. Yet in the 21st century, shooting remains one of the few collegiate sports that’s gender blind ‒ and in which women are highly competitive. It’s time to take a fresh look at which sports lend themselves to head-to-head competition, regardless of gender.”
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Eight years ago, when equestrian was the only Olympic sport that was gender neutral, we wrote: “If the horse doesn’t care who’s handling it, why should a gun?”
How will Los Angeles beat the Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony? I can’t wait to see how Sunday’s closing ceremony will compare with the opening ceremony’s historic parade of nations on boats down the River Seine. But L.A. holds the next Summer Games. How do you top the Eiffel Tower? Traditionally, at a closing ceremony, the next Olympic host also puts on a show to tease coming attractions. There are rumors that Tom Cruise, who’s been prominently attending numerous Olympic events around Paris, will execute some wild stunt.
Hollywood, bring it.
Thuan Le Elston, a USA TODAY Opinion editor, is the author of “Rendezvous at the Altar: From Vietnam to Virginia.”
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Olympics brought us so many viral moments – and many more questions
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