Kim Yuna Searching for Gold Medal... Korean Sport & Olympic Committee to Request IOC for Reinvestigation of Sotnikova's Doping Case

The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee is reportedly planning to request a reinvestigation from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) regarding doping allegations against Adelina Sotnikova (27, Russia), drawing attention to whether Kim Yuna can reclaim the controversial gold medal from the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

Sotnikova won the women's singles figure skating gold medal at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, surpassing Kim Yuna. At the time, there were controversies over biased judging as well as doping allegations. Recently, Sotnikova appeared on a YouTube broadcast and stirred controversy by stating that she tested positive in doping tests during the Sochi Olympics.

According to Yonhap News on the 11th, a representative from the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee stated that they plan to collect relevant data and past cases through the Korea Anti-Doping Agency (KADA) and request the IOC to reinvestigate Sotnikova. The official said that Sotnikova herself admitted to testing positive in the first test in 2014 and negative in the second test, and expressed hope that advances in doping test technology would allow confirmation of doping status that was not definitively detected at the time.

On a recent YouTube broadcast, Sotnikova said, "I tested positive in the 2014 doping test," adding, "I had to take a second test, and fortunately, no issues were found in the second sample, so I was not sanctioned."

Although the IOC investigated Russia's systematic doping practices in 2016, after the Sochi Olympics, it is known that Sotnikova's urine samples were damaged.

[Photo by Yonhap News]

If the IOC accepts the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee's request and initiates a reinvestigation, it is expected that Sotnikova's first and second samples collected in 2014 will be reviewed again.

A representative from the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee said, "According to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) regulations, athletes' blood and urine samples collected are not discarded for 10 years," adding, "If the IOC accepts our request, we will be able to thoroughly resolve the related suspicions."

If the IOC confirms any issues after the reinvestigation, Sotnikova's gold medal could be stripped.

In fact, there have been numerous cases where medals were reassigned to the next-ranked athletes after positive doping test results were confirmed post-competition.

For example, Jang Mi-ran, a former national weightlifting representative and the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, originally placed 4th at the 2012 London Olympics. However, the urine sample of Hripsime Khurshudyan (Armenia), who won the bronze medal, tested positive for banned substances, and Jang was confirmed as the bronze medalist in 2016, four years later.

If Sotnikova's medal is revoked, the gold medal would be awarded to Kim Yuna, achieving back-to-back Olympic golds following her 2010 Vancouver victory. In the history of the Winter Olympics women's figure skating singles, only Norway's Sonja Henie (three consecutive wins from 1928 to 1936) and Germany's Katarina Witt (two consecutive wins from 1984 to 1988) have won consecutive gold medals.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.