Ukrainian Fencer Disqualified for Refusing Handshake with Russian Opponent
Olga Kharlan, an Olympic champion fencer from Ukraine, was disqualified from the world championships after not shaking hands with her Russian opponent, Anna Smirnova, following their bout. The International Fencing Federation (FIE) allows athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in a neutral capacity, but Kharlan's refusal to shake hands led to her disqualification. The FIE has not provided an explanation for the disqualification, and Ukraine's fencing federation president was not given one when he asked. The incident occurred the day after Ukraine changed its policy to allow its athletes to compete against individual athletes from Russia and Belarus in Olympic qualifiers.