The members of the US figure skating team did not compete at the Paris Olympics, but that's where their medal ceremony was held. The nine athletes were presented with the gold due them from the 2020 Winter Games in Beijing in Champions Park near the Eiffel Tower on Wednesday. They held up US flags and bouquets, and the crowd chanted "USA!" while the names of the winners were read, NPR reports. "That was amazing, more than I could have ever dreamed of," said Vincent Zhou afterward. "Everything has come full circle now."
The wait was connected to Kamila Valieva's disqualification. The figure skater, then 15, led the Russian Olympic Committee to a gold medal over the US but tested positive for a prohibited performance-enhancing drug. No medals were awarded while everyone awaited a final ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which last month upheld a four-year ban for Valieva and threw out her Beijing performance. The reordering of medal finishers put the US at the top, Japan second, and the ROC third, per CNN. Japan's team received silver in the same ceremony Wednesday.
"We're all so incredibly grateful," Madison Hubbell said. "What a special moment for us." The US winners honored are Evan Bates, Karen Chen, Nathan Chen, Madison Chock, Zachary Donohue, Brandon Frazier, Alexa Knierim, Hubbell, and Zhou. (More 2024 Paris Olympics stories.)
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