When he was a competitive figure skater, Johnny Weir was always coached by Russians. He ended up learning Russian, and he’s quite fluent to this day. I haven’t seen the video, but apparently Weir was translating what the Russian ice skaters and coaches were saying to each other after the final skates on Thursday, in what was the conclusion of the figure skating drama at the Beijing Olympics. All of the DRAMA was going down on Team ROC too.

Russian skater Kamila Valieva, 15, was widely considered to be a lock on the gold medal for individual figure skating. Then she tested positive for a banned substance and the IOC only found out about it last week. On Monday she was cleared to compete, even with the positive test. As it turns out, she was taking a cocktail of three PEDs, only one of which was banned. The situation was a complete trainwreck, and the IOC should have had the balls to simply suspend her until further notice. Instead, she was allowed to do her short and long programs. And in the end, she didn’t medal.

Kamila Valieva stumbled and fell her way through a nervy performance to end her controversial Beijing Olympics, while Russian Olympic Committee teammate Anna Shcherbakova won the gold medal Thursday in the women’s free skate. Valieva’s mistake-filled skate left her in fourth place, without a medal and in tears. The 15-year-old was heavily favored to win the gold but heads home with nothing from the women’s program and still faces investigation for a positive drug test.

In the end, her ROC teammate Shcherbakova won the gold in stunning fashion, but she also appeared devastated when the final scores came in.

If Valieva had won a medal, there would not have been a ceremony due to the ongoing investigation, and the figure skating community was outraged that she was allowed to compete.

No one seemed happy with the result Thursday. Shcherbakova, who finished with a 255.95 combined score from the two days of competition, stood alone while much of the ROC team consoled Valieva. Valieva didn’t speak to reporters in the mixed zone after her performance, instead quickly making her way through the room without stopping. Shcherbakova, who did speak to reporters, didn’t offer much insight into what had happened with Valieva but insisted she herself had no mixed emotions after earning the top spot on the podium.

“No, I am just happy. I am only happy,” Shcherbakova said. “I still haven’t realized what happened. I can’t believe the Olympics are already over for me.”

Alexandra Trusova, also representing the ROC, won the silver medal after a performance with five successful quad jumps. But a sobbing Trusova said she didn’t want to participate in the medal ceremony, although she ultimately did attend the event.

Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto won the bronze medal.

[From ESPN]

Valieva sobbed after her long program and when she found out that she didn’t medal. Update: Apparently, Trusova cried to the Team ROC officials that she hated this, she hated skating, something like that. There are theories floating around that someone – the IOC? ROC? – told Valieva to choke her long program just to end the controversy. I don’t know. It seems perfectly reasonable that a 15-year-old under enormous pressure, taking heart medication which was never prescribed to her, would naturally falter in the biggest spotlight. I’m not saying the conspiracy is totally off-the-wall though. God knows. She just never should have been able to compete. Period.