Ukraine demands removal of neutral status of Russian athlete Smirnova after an incident with Ukrainian fencer Kharlan

The Fencing Federation of Ukraine appealed to the International Fencing Federation (FIE) with a demand to exclude Russian fencer Anna Smirnova from the list of neutral athletes after she insisted on shaking hands with Ukrainian Olha Kharlan.

The Fencing Federation of Ukraine reported this.

The department is convinced that Smirnova does not meet the status of a neutral athlete. Therefore, the Ukrainian side demands to immediately remove her from participation in competitions under the auspices of the FIE.

"Anna Smirnova's activity on Instagram, where she openly demonstrates verbal and non-verbal support for the Russian army, which is a symbol and implementer of aggression against Ukraine, shows that she is by no means a neutral athlete and has never been one," the report emphasized.

In addition, the Fencing Federation of Ukraine emphasized that this is not the first time that people who "act contrary to the peace-making mission of the Olympic movement" are included in the list of neutral athletes.

The federation is insisting that the FIE Executive Committee consider granting neutral status to make it more efficient and open for all the FIE members.

After the situation with Olha Kharlan, screenshots from Smirnova's social networks began to be published online. In the photos, she poses with her brother in the uniform of a Russian soldier.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, noted, "Smirnova lost in fair competition and decided to play dirty with a handshake. This is how the Russian army operates on the battlefield."

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It should be noted that Olha Kharlan refused the traditional ritual- a handshake after the victory over the Russian fencer Anna Smirnova.

After talking with her rival, the athlete left the court, and the "neutral" fencer demanded Olha's disqualification.

Despite the judges rejecting the Russian athlete's protest, Kharlan's next match against the Bulgarian Ilieva did not occur. The competition organizers disqualified the athlete for disrespecting her opponent from the Russian Federation.

In response, the Fencing Federation of Ukraine began preparing a protest, and citizens expressed indignation.

Later it became known that the leader of the Ukrainian fencing team, Olha Kharlan, received automatic qualification from the International Olympic Committee for the 2024 Olympics.

In addition, the World Fencing Federation FIE has announced that it will change the handshake rules in official competitions.

It should be noted that the International Olympic Committee has officially invited 203 national Olympic committees, except for the NOCs of Guatemala, Russia, and Belarus, to participate in the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.