IOC President Thomas Bach said he had felt “very, very disturbed” while watching Kamila Valieva’s final performance at the Beijing Olympics, in which the teen figure skater fell four times and burst into tears at the end of her routine.
During the press conference on Friday, Bach further added that he was unnerved by the reaction from coach Eteri Tutberidze after Valieva’s performance.
Bach commended Valieva for her ability to compose herself after making a mistake, despite critique from Tutberidze. The coach can be heard saying: “Why did you let it go? Explain to me, why? Why did you stop fighting completely?”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has publicly disagreed with the IOC’s statement, stating: “Of course we respect his opinion but we do not necessarily agree with him. He doesn’t like the harshness of our coaches but everybody knows that the harshness of a coach in high-level sport is key for their athletes to achieve victories.”
Bach has stressed the importance of looking into Valieva’s entourage, detailing that “rather than giving her comfort, rather than try to help her, you could feel this chilling atmosphere.”