Athletistic/Fencing. The 2008 Olympic team saber champion Olga Kharlan recalled her fight with Russian Anna Smirnova at the World Fencing Championships.
“First of all, it was my personal decision, I didn’t discuss it with anyone. As a Ukrainian, I wanted to show that some norms need to be changed, because reality has changed. I decided not to shake his hand and I did it for the sake of all Ukrainian athletes and everyone who follows me. I understood the consequences and I knew that my career could be stopped, but I couldn’t do otherwise. It’s good that my coach, the President of the Ukrainian Fencing Federation, the National Olympic Committee and the Minister of Sports tried to explain why I should not be disqualified. As a result, that’s exactly what the judges did, and later the rules were changed,” Harlan said, as quoted by AS.
Recall that during the 2023 World Cup, Kharlan refused to shake hands with a Russian athlete, for which she was disqualified according to the rules in force at that time. However, the rules were subsequently changed and Harlan received a wild card from the IOC to participate in the next Summer Olympics, which will be held in Paris from July 26 to August 11.
- Ukrainian Harlan doubted the neutrality of Russian athletes
Source: Sport
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