MOSCOW, September 23. /TASS/. The International Skating Union (ISU) expressed the opinion that young athletes who violated anti-doping rules cannot be exempt from sanctions, despite their adolescent age, an ISU official told TASS.

The hearing between the ISU, the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva will be held at the Court of Arbitration for Sport on September 26-29.

"The ISU is of the opinion that all young athletes must be protected against doping and such protection cannot happen by exempting young athletes from sanctions," the ISU official said.

Valieva, 17, is suspected of taking trimetazidine, a prohibited substance. The substance was discovered in her December 25, 2021 test, but was not made public until February 2022, during the Beijing Olympics. At that point, the athlete had already won gold in the team competition.