Ban on Carolina Kostner Over | Golden Skate

Ban on Carolina Kostner Over

cruzceleste

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 23, 2014
Source
Former figure skating world champion Carolina Kostner faces a proposed lengthy ban in the doping case involving her former boyfriend and Olympic race walking gold medalist Alex Schwazer.

The Italian Olympic Committee's anti-doping prosecutor recommended Friday that Kostner be banned for four years and three months — longer than the 3 ½-year ban that Schwazer is serving.

The request was made as part of a widespread doping inquiry set off when Schwazer tested positive for EPO before the 2012 London Games

Kostner's lawyer said following a CONI hearing in September that the skater had nothing to do with Schwazer's doping, but prosecutors believe she helped the walker avoid a drug test.

Giovanni Fontana, Kostner's lawyer, would not comment Friday when contacted by The Associated Press, saying that he was still waiting to receive the prosecutor's recommendation.

The case will now be decided by CONI's internal doping court.

The 27-year-old Kostner, the 2014 Olympic bronze medalist and 2012 world champion, is taking this year off from competition but a long ban would rule her out of the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and could end her career.

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2014/11/28/3563962_coni-seeks-bans-for-3-sprinters.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy
 

Alchamei

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 14, 2014
I don't know, but it seems to me in IOC are rather stupid. It will be horrible if she receives this ban, however, nobody is sure Caro will come back to competing. The worse punishment for her would be striping her of her medals, mainly the World title and Olympic bronze.

That doesn't change the fact it would be unfair for her, mainly to have a longer ban than him.
 

MK's Winter

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 9, 2009
I don't know, but it seems to me in IOC are rather stupid. It will be horrible if she receives this ban, however, nobody is sure Caro will come back to competing. The worse punishment for her would be striping her of her medals, mainly the World title and Olympic bronze. That doesn't change the fact it would be unfair for her, mainly to have a longer ban than him.

While I agree with you I am more concerned that they strip her of her Olympic Bronze which I heard was a possibility.
 

centerpt1

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 27, 2008
It does seem unfair if she would get longer than the doper...but if she truly lied/misled/interfered with the doping check process, she does deserve some punishment.
 

Sam-Skwantch

“I solemnly swear I’m up to no good”
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Country
United-States
Is Olympic race walking as boring as I sounds?
 

penguin

On the Ice
Joined
Mar 31, 2012
However, published reports of Kostner's testimony to Bolzano prosecutors showed she allegedly admitted lying to inspectors from the World Anti-Doping Agency who came to her home in Germany looking for Schwazer on July 29, 2012 — days before Schwazer flew to London for the Olympics.

According to Fontana, the skater told inspectors that Schwazer wasn't home because she wanted to respect his privacy, saying that on his WADA whereabouts form for that day he had listed that he would be available in Italy at a different time.

Ultimately, the WADA inspectors caught up with Schwazer in Italy and that's when he tested positive.

Is this all she did or was there more to the helping-him-avoid-testing speculation? Because that sounds pretty mild to me and stripping her of any medals seems really extreme.
 

fleeting

Queen Anissina
Medalist
Joined
Feb 19, 2014
This seems extreme. Fine her, sure, but banning her for four years/stripping her of rightly earned titles when she wasn't even the one doping? Excessive.
 

gravy

¿No ven quién soy yo?
Record Breaker
Joined
Mar 28, 2014
This seems extreme. Fine her, sure, but banning her for four years/stripping her of rightly earned titles when she wasn't even the one doping? Excessive.

I would agree with her competition banning and fining, but no to her medal stripping since she was clean for those.

Kostner is an elite level athlete and it's pretty ridiculous to think that she would accompany Schwazer to Ferrari's office (a notorious doping expert) and not know who he was. Or that his "supplements" in the fridge were EPO. Kostner may have that pretty and innocent doe-eyed face, but she's not stupid.
 

Meoima

Match Penalty
Joined
Feb 13, 2014
The point is why the longer ban than her ex??? :shocked: I am okay with the ban, but...why her ex oly got that and she might have to get this??
 

cooper

Medalist
Joined
Mar 23, 2010
disgusting.. and i think because she's a female.. so she will hit by harder punishment.. what a joke!!
 

MiRé

Match Penalty
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
If it happens it will be because of lobbying from the USFSA, as Gracie would then get the bronze.

I was just about to say this...... it would be devastating for Carolina to lose her Olympics medal. After all, she's been through so many hardships and downfalls, especially during Olympics season.
 

fleeting

Queen Anissina
Medalist
Joined
Feb 19, 2014
I would agree with her competition banning and fining, but no to her medal stripping since she was clean for those.

Kostner is an elite level athlete and it's pretty ridiculous to think that she would accompany Schwazer to Ferrari's office (a notorious doping expert) and not know who he was. Or that his "supplements" in the fridge were EPO. Kostner may have that pretty and innocent doe-eyed face, but she's not stupid.

I do agree with you that she probably wasn't absolutely in the dark about who they saw and that he was doping, but a four year+ ban seems excessive given that she was only a witness and likely not a participant, as well as the fact that the person directly breaking the rules would have a shorter sentence.

A few months, sure. A year or two off the GP, fine... But taking her out of contention for even Pyeongchang? That's a lot of time, and athletes have been given shorter bans for far worse.
 

cruzceleste

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 23, 2014
Is this all she did or was there more to the helping-him-avoid-testing speculation? Because that sounds pretty mild to me and stripping her of any medals seems really extreme.

She didn´t come forward, knowing what he was doing. So I don´t consider her actions "mild", but her pubishment shouldn´t be worst that the one her ex boyfriend is doing.
 

MK's Winter

Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 9, 2009
If it happens it will be because of lobbying from the USFSA, as Gracie would then get the bronze.

I read it in one of the articles. I think it's excessive. I dont think Carolina would do anything like that intentionally. I just think she is really naive.
 

gravy

¿No ven quién soy yo?
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Joined
Mar 28, 2014
I do agree with you that she probably wasn't absolutely in the dark about who they saw and that he was doping, but a four year+ ban seems excessive given that she was only a witness and likely not a participant, as well as the fact that the person directly breaking the rules would have a shorter sentence.

A few months, sure. A year or two off the GP, fine... But taking her out of contention for even Pyeongchang? That's a lot of time, and athletes have been given shorter bans for far worse.

I'm not sure what country this ruling would fall under (probably Italy), but I know in the US, usually a person who confesses to a crime like her former husband would get a lighter ruling than even an accomplice who didn't do anything. Or so goes that silly chant: "first to squeal, gets the deal".

But yes, I completely forgot that part you mentioned and I don't agree that she should get a longer ban than Schwazer.
 

FSGMT

Record Breaker
Joined
Sep 10, 2012
This is nonsense :hopelessness: She was aware of something for sure, but it is a "reasonable" thing not to go to the police and tell them that your boyfriend is doing "something strange"... That said, since this is illegal she should be punished, but in a reasonable way!!
 

anyanka

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 8, 2011
She herself didn't commit the crime, at worst it was aiding and abetting. So why are they recommending a longer sentence for her than for Alex? Because they want to make an example of her. And she herself didn't compete under the influence of the drugs themselves, meaning the offenses of which she is accused neither enhanced nor inhibited her ability to perform. Didn't she get tested for substances as part of winning those medals, anyway? If so, then what would be accomplished by stripping her of world and Olympic medals, especially if she herself didn't actually take the drug? They say in the law, "if the crime doesn't fit, you must acquit". What is she accused of that would result in (1) a ban and (2) potentially stripping her of her accomplishments? Does that mean she had to be voided of EVERY single medal she won in the four-year quad from 2010 to 2014? That's two dozen podium finishes!

This is the dumbest thing I've read all week, and that counts all of those dumb*** Black Friday sales announcements that are clogging the Internet and my TV.
 
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