Slate’s “What Next” took a deep dive into the Beijing Games figure skating scandal involving Russia's Kamila Valieva. Slate’s Mary Harris said after Valieva tested positive for banned substance, the "outcome seemed obvious" as "most countries would pull an athlete like that out of competition, but Russia, Russia’s not most countries." Slate’s Justin Peters noted Valieva “skated in near complete silence” as NBC’s Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir said very little during her performance.
BLAST FROM THE PAST: “Torched” host Molly Bloom looked back at an earlier Olympic figure skating scandal, this one at the '02 Salt Lake Games involving Canadian pair skaters Jamie Sale and David Pelletier. Former skating commentator Sandra Bezic said “their performance that night” for the Gold Medal was “as good as they could possibly do.” But Bloom said commentators were "stunned" when the scores were revealed and the Russian team was in first place. Bloom: “The moment isn’t just uncomfortable, it’s shocking, heartbreaking.”
MID-ATLANTIC RANGE: CIAA Commissioner Jacqie McWilliams spoke with the “SportsTravel Podcast” about the HBCU conference relocating its men’s and women’s basketball tournament from Charlotte after 13 years to Baltimore, noting “it wasn’t that we wanted to leave Charlotte,” but Baltimore “submitted in a bid that was hard to turn down.” McWilliams: “It was extremely attractive to see the support around this tournament that wasn’t just local, but it was really the region.”
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