Kamila Valieva failed drug test confirmed in Winter Olympics

Kamila Valieva, the 15-year-old Russian figure skating star who helped her team win Winter Olympic gold in Beijing, failed a drugs test in December.

Valieva, who was the first female skater to land a quadruple jump in competition as her team won last Monday, had a sample collected on Christmas Day at the Russian Figure Skating Championships in St Petersburg.

But the positive result was only reported on Tuesday - the day after she helped to win team gold, but before the medal ceremony had taken place.

Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, which is used in the prevention of angina attacks, but is on the banned list because it is classed as a cardiac metabolic modulator and has been proven to improve physical efficiency.

A series of appeals means this case will now be taken to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) to make a final ruling - with International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams saying he wanted a resolution "as quickly as possible".

The medals for the team event - in which the United States finished second, Japan third and Canada fourth - will not be awarded until the outcome of the Cas hearing.

A spokesman for the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) said it will "take comprehensive measures in order to protect the rights and interests of the members of the ROC team and to preserve the honestly won Olympic gold medal".

Cas will now hear the case before Valieva's scheduled appearance in the individual event, which starts next Tuesday, 15 February.BBC