Susanne Lyons, chair of the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, made it clear Thursday in Beijing that the pending “legal matter” surrounding Russian skating sensation Kamila Valieva and a failed drug test is more than just who winds up winning gold in the figure skating team event.
“Really the whole credibility of the Olympic Movement and the Paralympic Movement stands teetering on the edge of us saying that we really believe and live the values that we say we stand for,” Lyons told Around the Rings.
“It is so important to the athletes of the world that the values of this [Olympic] Movement be upheld, and one of the most important values is integrity of sport,” Lyons said.