Russia Reacts After Figure Skater Doping Allegations Swirl Around Olympics

Sporting and political figures in Russia have responded to the cancellation of the Winter Olympics medal ceremony for the figure skating team event, which was won by Russian athletes.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) cited legal obstacles that had to be settled with the International Skating Union for its decision to postpone Tuesday's ceremony.

The final a day earlier had been dominated by the 15-year-old Russian Olympic Committee sensation Kamila Valieva.

The Inside the Games website has reported that the IOC made its decision because one of the ROC skaters had failed a doping test that was conducted before the Beijing Games.

Citing a number of sources, The Guardian has reported that the substance involved was not performance enhancing.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday: "While we have not heard any official statements, let's still judge by official statements.

"Let's still wait for some clarification for understanding either from our sports officials or from the IOC," he told reporters, according to the news agency Tass.

Dmitry Svishev, a member of the Russian parliament's committee for sport and tourism, said: "We need to wait for information from official sources, like the ROC and Russian Figure Skating Federation."

The doping claim "might be a mistake," he added, according to RT. "That's why, let's stay beyond media hysteria and continue preparing for the competitions."

RT, a state-funded news outlet, also quoted Alexander Enbert, a Russian silver medalist in pairs skating at the 2018 Winter Olympics, who said he didn't "know how doping can help" with his sport.

"Figure skating has always remained a pure sport, where such incidents were very rare," Enbert added.

A positive doping test would be a blow to the IOC after it allowed Russian athletes to compete under the ROC banner despite a ban because of state-sponsored doping.

A veteran Russian skating coach, Tatiana Tarasova, said of the allegation: "This cannot be true. We can be pointed fingers at, but we are all clean."

Russian media have also reported the comments of Alexei Zheleznyakov, described by Pravda as one of the team's choreographers.

Zheleznyakov said no one from the Russian team could violate anti-doping rules and wrote on social media: "They want to deprive us of this gold!" He has also described the allegation as "nonsense" and "provocation," according to Komsomolskaya Pravda.

IOC spokesperson Mark Adams told reporters that the ceremony would take place as soon as possible after a "situation arose at short notice that requires legal consultation." He did not provide further details.

"You can bet your bottom dollar we are doing everything that this situation can be resolved," Adams added.

The ROC team is Valieva, Mark Kondratiuk, 18, Anastasia Mishina, 20, Aleksandr Galliamov, 22, Victoria Sinitsina, 26, and Nikita Katsalapov, 30.

Valieva made history on Monday by becoming the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics, performing the feat twice during her routine.

Newsweek has contacted the IOC for comment.