From that moment on, a war with clear political overtones began, in which the 15-year-old prodigy found herself caught in the middle of a legal conflict of interests. 

On the one hand, as a minor, the case should have been treated with absolute confidentiality; on the other, the Kazan athlete had broken into the elite and the Olympic movement had the right to maintain the cleanliness of its competitions, something it did not do, for example, when it allowed the American sprinter Justin Gatlin to compete back into the Olympics after two previous failed doping tests. 

In early November, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) issued its ruling on the case, making it more or less clear that a final decision on the skater's possible sanction would be announced in mid to late January 2024. 

In the meantime, Valieva continues to train, and last weekend she once again proved her mettle with a clear victory at the Russian Grand Prix at the Megasport Arena Moscow, despite falling twice in her free skate and finishing a little disappointed. 

In the absence of many of Russia's top skaters, the sensation of the Winter Games won with a total of 226.22 points, well ahead of Veronika Yametova (212.759) and Sofia Muravyeva (210.25) 

"I tried, I really tried. I made a step forward compared to the previous competition, but the jumps didn't work: I could have replaced the last Lutz and that would have been it, but I decided to fight. Unfortunately, it didn't work out," lamented Valieva, once again demonstrating her obsession with perfectionism even in the most difficult of situations. 

"It was a very bad lutz, but I'm very proud of myself: there were so many thoughts in my head and so many contradictions before I went out. It was not my best performance, but I repeat, I am proud of myself. I made mistakes, but I know where we need to work," the Russian added. 

Will CAS allow her to prepare for the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo with the best guarantees, or will it impose the first-ever sanction on a top athlete who committed her alleged 'sin' when she was just 15 years old? If cheating is confirmed, will it sanction her and let the real culprits, those who controlled a minor, off the hook? Will CAS really dare to intervene in the case or will it show its political side? We will have the answers in two months' time at the latest.