Chapter 107 Doping Controversy
As more details emerged that evening, the whole thing spiraled out of control.
First, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said that it was indeed investigating Ophelia's drug test results at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.
Then there was an anonymous revelation from a so-called insider of the U.S. figure skating team, who told the media that Ophelia Park and her coaching team were indeed not clean.
Under the dual influence of official and private sectors, Ophelia Park's reputation on the Internet plummeted.
There was no game the next day, only a private pre-game practice session.
However, there were undercurrents in the training venue.
Since Ophelia did not show up, many people focused their attention on He Hui and the other two American players.
But He Hui thought that the person with the biggest emotional fluctuations on the entire field might not be anyone else, but Tan Ling next to him who had already begun to think about the possibility of retirement.
"How do you feel?" He Hui approached Tan Ling, who had just finished training with Hele, and asked.
Tan Ling sighed first, it seemed that she was experiencing a lot of psychological fluctuations.
After all, if Ophelia is finally found guilty of doping, the silver medal in the women's singles event in PyeongChang will be revoked. According to the ranking, Petrova, who was originally third, will win the silver medal, and Tan Ling, who was originally fourth, will get a bronze medal.
The difference from regretfully missing out on the podium to reaching the podium with just a triple jump meant much more than just one ranking.
This extra surprise that was very likely to come disrupted Tan Ling's normal rhythm of preparation for the competition. As a result, she, who was in good shape recently, somehow missed two triple jumps during the training.
"I just hope this matter will come to a conclusion soon." Tan Ling stuck out her tongue and said helplessly, "After all, I have no choice but to wait."
"If WADA responds, this matter will be settled."
"Don't give me too much hope." Tan Ling narrowed her eyes, raised her eyebrows and looked at He Hui, pouting, "lest I feel bad when I fail."
He Hui looked at Tan Ling and replied jokingly, "Then you should focus on tomorrow's free skating first."
*
The next day.
Ophelia temporarily announced her withdrawal before the free skating started because she was under investigation.
Now the Internet is even more lively.
"I feel like Ophelia's withdrawal from the competition is a signal that explains a lot of things..."
"I heard that all processes are being urgently accelerated. This matter has attracted a lot of international attention. After all, Ophelia is currently the second in the world."
"I'm dying of laughter. Everyone, stop arguing and go watch Tan Ling's competition! Is she going to win an Olympic medal soon?!"
Tan Ling was the first to perform in the last group, and she did some self-reflection for a long time before stepping onto the ice rink for the sixth practice.
"Press the corners of your mouth?" He Hui teased.
Tan Ling glanced at him sideways with a bad temper and said with a click of the tongue: "Is it obvious to me?"
"Hmm." Miss He blinked her eyes and asked a rhetorical question.
Tan Ling took a deep breath and concentrated on the show that was about to be performed.
"The set of triple jumps should not be difficult for you, right?" He Hui asked, looking at Tan Ling who looked like he was facing a formidable enemy.
“From the choreography alone, it wasn’t difficult, but all six of my jumps were in the second half.”
"Physical fitness problem?"
"Yes, please. I'm already 26 years old." Tan Ling replied with a smile, "Isn't it time to think about retirement?"
He Hui was suddenly speechless, but subconsciously retorted: "That was also the prime of his life."
Tan Ling always looks young, and He Hui usually doesn't think about age.
Twenty-six is the beginning of life for a person, but for a figure skater it is almost the end of his career.
"Then... let's try our best to leave no regrets in every game from now on." He Hui continued.
"certainly."
Soon, the staff asked the last group of contestants to prepare to go on stage, allowing Tan Ling to stand on the world stage more and more rarely.
The tension during the chat disappeared when the music started. Tan Ling opened her arms and glided out into the wind, showing the jumps, spins and dance expressions of a world-class athlete even though she was only 26 years old.
For Tan Ling at this age, the most difficult thing is the string of Bellman.
Figure skaters are prone to ankle injuries and waist strain, and even serious cases can affect their daily movements. Behind those beautiful and flexible spinning movements are plasters and worn-out bodies.
Tan Ling gradually became unable to perform those rotating postures that required extremely high flexibility. From the donut posture to lifting the knife, she had already spent a lot of effort. From lifting the knife to the final Bierman, Tan Ling had to hold on to her last breath to do it.
After gritting his teeth and completing the number of laps required for grading, Tan Ling put down his lifted leg.
The pressure on her waist disappeared instantly, and Tan Ling finished the final movement with a smile, bringing her clean free skating to a perfect end.
After Tan Ling died, He Hui's first words were not congratulations, but -
"Looks like he's still strong despite his age?"
Tan Ling was too tired to reach out her hand, she just moved her eyes and glanced at her.
"Who did you learn this from? If you ask me, you should stay away from Tang Meng. She has corrupted you."
"I'm relieved that you still have the energy to curse."
Tan Ling: “…”
Without Ophelia's free skating, the arena became He Hui's exclusive show, with screams, applause, exclamations and sighs forming a symphony.
Other people's quadruple jumps are precious and difficult moves, one or two are already top-level, but He Hui performed six quadruple jumps at once, as if it was a clearance sale in a supermarket.
Just two words: arrogant.
It fits the temperament of a young lady very well.
Although the final score did not exceed that of the free skating in the Winter Olympics, it was very close, and she easily won the championship title again.
Since He Hui made her debut, she has never let the World Championship title slip away. This is the most dominant victory.
Russia's Sergeyeva did not participate in this World Championships due to health reasons, while her teammate Petrova performed normally and finished second.
As for the third place, it was taken by the veteran Tan Ling.
“Come to think of it, isn’t this the Winter Olympics podium after Ophelia was sent off? (Doghead)”
"The truth behind the above story! Wow, it would be better if the background could be changed to Pyeongchang."
"I burst into tears. The picture of He Hui and Tan Ling standing on the same stage together was so beautiful."
"2018 Milan World Figure Skating Championships Women's Singles Bronze Medalist, China, Tan Ling!"
As soon as the host's announcement sounded, Tan Ling subconsciously looked at He Hui beside her.
The two looked at each other and saw each other's figures in each other's pupils.
Then there was a smile that reached the bottom of his eyes.
Before Tan Ling stepped onto the podium, she suddenly hugged He Hui. The hug was so tight that it squeezed out all the oxygen between them.
When Tan Ling finally untied her arms, He Hui looked into her red eyes and said, "It's not like you're going to retire soon."
"I. Didn't. Cry." Tan Ling emphasized word by word.
Tan Ling turned around, stepped onto her podium, and welcomed the thunderous applause.
He Hui joined the applause from the audience, looking at her senior sister who was shining under the spotlight on the stage and embracing the glory that belonged to her.
*
After the game.
In the mixed interview area where everything has been settled, the topic always comes back to Ophelia.
After He Hui finished an interview with the Chinese media, he had just walked less than a meter forward when he was stopped by a familiar American reporter.
What are you going to ask this time?
He Hui stared at the reporter leisurely and looked him in the eye frankly.
The reporter was stunned for no reason.
"Congratulations on winning the championship with six quads in the free skate!"
Be polite first, then use force, and then throw the sharp questions you prepared in advance to her.
"Ophelia Park and you are the only two players in the women's singles who have multiple quadruple jumps. Everyone thinks that multiple quadruple jumps are almost impossible for female players without the help of banned drugs. If Ophelia is found guilty of doping this time, what do you think of the future of the women's singles quadruple jump?"
After listening to this, He Hui raised his eyelids, sneered, and asked back: "What do I think?"
The subtext of the reporter's questions was too obvious - not a single sentence said that she was suspected of taking drugs, but every sentence pointed out that she might not be clean either.
He Hui's reaction made the reporter's fake smile a little bit uncomfortable, and he managed to respond: "There are many people on the Internet who are concerned about this issue."
"Really?" He Hui raised the corner of his mouth playfully. "I think the future of women's singles without stimulants is undoubtedly brighter. I believe that although there may be few people who can do multiple quadruple jumps now, there will definitely be more and more in the near future."
After saying that, He Hui strode away.
On the same day, this highly authoritative American media in the industry published a long and in-depth report.
"Taking drugs just to get out of the four weeks? The doping scandal in women's figure skating."
The article seems to be talking about Ophelia's doping incident, but it implicitly implies through interviews with so-called experts and relevant practitioners that He Hui, who has six four-week sets of doping tests, may also be involved. In particular, the ending focuses on the twists and turns of decades of battles between doping detection technology and the athlete coaching team, which seems to be a cover-up.
This report also sparked a lot of discussion among ice hockey fans. Some people were actually influenced by the speculation.
"A quadruple jump is really difficult for female athletes. I think it's normal to have doubts."
"He Hui is six weeks, it's really scary when you think about it..."
So, normal ice fans were angry.
"Can you please stop pretending to be reasonable? It's not like Ophelia is the only one who got tested. It's a problem that He Hui has no problem!"
"Is there really anyone who would fall for such a suggestive report??"
Lin Xiaoman sent the report to He Hui and rolled her eyes: "You can't do it yourself, so you spread rumors that others can do it by taking drugs. Do you have any shame?"
“They have no face.”
He Hui handed the new email received on his mobile phone to Lin Xiaoman: "But, they achieved their goal."
"......Disgusting!" Lin Xiaoman pouted.
He Hui received a new flight drug test notice from WADA. Although it is normal to conduct flight tests during the off-season, it is still quite uncomfortable to choose this sensitive time.
"To be honest, the Chinese team has conducted twice as many tests as the other team, right? Urine tests, blood tests, they use all sorts of methods." Lin Xiaoman was so angry that she drank two big gulps of wolfberry health tea to cool down. "They are so eager to find out that we have problems that they would wait until now?"
"Just think of it as a routine flight check. I'm innocent anyway." He Hui shrugged. Even though she was being splashed with mud, she turned around and comforted Lin Xiaoman.
"Hmph, you're still angry." Lin Xiaoman crossed her arms.
*
The off-season for figure skating may seem peaceful, but the women's singles is indeed turbulent under the shadow of the doping scandal.
The results of Ophelia's doping investigation, which shocked the entire figure skating world, were finally released in June, ushering in the final chapter.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has released a statement outlining the outcome of its doping sanctions against Ophelia Park.
Ophelia Park had her silver medal in the women's singles event in Pyeongchang revoked and was banned for four years.
CAS's anti-doping department was established starting from the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. It is specifically responsible for issues related to doping penalties and also accepts appeals from athletes.
Ophelia's team naturally refused to accept the defeat and made a final struggle.
But international public opinion has already made the final judgment on her behavior. The ice fans who once praised Ophelia the most are now quitting being her fans, heartbroken.
Most of the last few "die-hard fans" who are still active used the previous report mindlessly to try to drag He Hui into the water.
"Is there a possibility that He Hui is not clean either?"
But soon, they were drowned out by the curses and were completely silent.
"What a dirty trick! Did you know that because of this unscrupulous report, the Chinese figure skating team had to do many more unannounced inspections... I feel bad for them."
"I saw WADA responded to this question. All other tests for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics were normal. So, fans of someone who is abnormal can you please stop being stubborn?"
Lin Xiaoman finally breathed a sigh of relief as the doping scandal came to an end.
"If you take the wrong path, you will have to pay the price!" said Lin Xiaoman.
"yes."
He Hui's eyes fell on the group photo on the podium of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in the latest report.
At that time, Ophelia still had a strong sense of unwillingness and her eyes were full of ambition.
If you scroll down, you will see Ophelia in a panic as she hurriedly left the mixed interview area with her head down after the short program at the World Championships.
The two pictures form a sharp contrast, telling the story of Ophelia Park's life from the top to the nowhere place.
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