BEIJING — Kamila Valieva took the ice just before 10 p.m. Tuesday to the sound of clicking cameras, and the world watching and wondering what she'd do.
In a moment of sports theater, the Russian phenom at the center of a doping saga turned in a shaky performance during her short program at Capital Indoor Stadium. She twisted off-axis on the first of her three jumps – the notorious triple axel – and touched the ice on her descent. But she landed the other two jumps, good enough for a score of 82.16.
Valieva, 15, appeared to begin tearing up on the ice at the conclusion of her performance, then raised her hands to her face.