(ANSA) – PHUKET, JUN 07 – Four months after the sensational Valieva affair that shook the Beijing Winter Olympics, the International Skating Federation has raised the minimum age for skaters and figure skaters to participate in senior competitions to 17 years. The debate on the very young age of skaters – and especially of figure skaters – re-emerged during the Games, in the wake of what happened to the Russian Kamila Valieva. A great favorite for the Olympic title at just 15 years old, the young woman could not withstand the pressure after finding herself at the center of a sensational doping scandal.
The reform, approved by delegates from 100 countries at the Phuket Congress in Thailand, will be implemented in two phases. The minimum age will first increase to 16 during the 2023-2024 season, then to 17 from 2024-2025. Objective: to avoid the physical and mental breakdown of skaters whose high-level sports career is often very short. “It is a historic decision”, commented the president of the ISU, Jan Dijkema, while the director general of the organism Fredi Schmid had defined the vote a “moment of truth” before the opening of the Congress. (HANDLE).
Source: Ansa
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