Allegations of Abuse and Responses: The Scandal in Latvian Figure Skating 0 16

The figure skating portal anythinggoe.com reports that the State Police (GP) is conducting an investigation into allegations made by Stepchenko against former coaches. However, police representatives, commenting on this information to the LETA agency, stated that they cannot provide comments that would identify specific individuals and cannot confirm whether an investigation has been initiated against them. Kovalchuk told LETA that no cases have been opened against them. It is emphasized that filing a report with the police does not automatically mean the initiation of a criminal process, as time is required to verify the information presented in the report.

As anythinggoe.com writes, in May 2024, Stepchenko informed the Latvian Figure Skating Association (LAFK) that coaches had behaved cruelly towards her for several years. In May of last year, she submitted a corresponding statement to the association, and the federation allegedly forwarded the information to the police.

Kovalchuk expressed the opinion in a conversation with LETA that what is happening is a smear campaign. The coaches reject all accusations against them.

"We have no information that a case has been opened; moreover, at the initiative of the coaches, a case was initiated in the fall against the athlete for defamation," Kovalchuk stated.

According to the information available to the coaches, the portal anythinggoe.com is linked to the school of Stepchenko's former coach, Stefan Lambiel. The coaches point out that the author of the article, Anna Kellar, is a PR manager for the Swiss figure skating school.

"This information can also be found on her social media. This raises doubts about the compliance of the publication with journalistic ethics and standards," Kovalchuk claims.

She emphasized that numerous international competitions are held at their club, and a good system has been established to allow figure skating as a hobby.

"Our club is equipped with surveillance cameras. During training, many parents are present nearby, as there is a full view of the hall through a glass wall from the café," Kovalchuk explained.

According to her, in 13 years of cooperation, no complaints have been received from Stepchenko or her parents.

"We hope that Sofia will return to high-level sports, prepare, and qualify for the next Olympic Games," she added.

Kovalchuk also urged anyone who commented to the portal about possible abuse to contact the police so that the coaches could defend themselves against accusations in a proper and legal manner.

Meanwhile, Anna Kellar, in a comment to LETA, indicated that she is just one of the authors of AnythingGOEs dealing with Stepchenko's case, and the coverage of the topic is a "process involving several staff members and editorial review before publication." According to her, interest in the topic arose after Stepchenko brought her attention to the allegations.

Kellar confirmed that she works with Lambiel and the Swiss school separately; however, these projects are not connected to the media platform for figure skating.

"The editorial team of AnythingGOEs is not connected in any way to Lambiel or his figure skating school," she emphasized.

Last year, the International Skating Union (ISU) also began investigating the allegations against the coaches. Despite the investigations, Estonian Reinsalu led the Latvian delegation at the European Championships held in Sheffield in January.

The coaches of the Kristal Ice club, Reinsalu and Kovalchuk, are the coaches of Latvian figure skater Fedor Kulish, and their participation is also planned for the upcoming Winter Olympics in February. Kovalchuk is accredited as a representative of the Latvian delegation, while Reinsalu, who also assists Estonian figure skaters, is included in the delegation of another country.

19-year-old Stepchenko, who participated in three World Championships and two European Championships, is currently not continuing her sports career after last season. In the fall, Stepchenko did not respond to LETA's request for comments on the circumstances of the case.