On Thursday, Kamila Valieva is likely to produce Olympic records for both highest score and least amount of joy — straight lines and strained smiles.
The 15-year-old is both the subject of intense international focus and perhaps the most isolated person on the planet, incapable of trusting anyone or anything around her.
She is a Russian who won’t technically be skating for Russia, because the country was “banned” from the Olympics for systematically doping its athletes. She will likely place first in a competition where no winner will be declared, no flowers or medals handed out, because she is under suspicion of being systematically doped by her country.