Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan disqualified after refusing handshake with Russian opponent

A controversy erupted during the ongoing World Fencing Championships when Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan was disqualified after she declined to shake hands with Russian opponent Anna Smirnova.

Kharlan, a renowned athlete with four Olympic medals and a world championship title, emerged victorious in the individual sabre bout with a score of 15-7. However, instead of shaking hands with Smirnova, she offered to tap blades as a gesture of protest.

Following the incident, Smirnova remained on the piste for over half an hour, engaging in discussions with various officials before eventually leaving the area. In fencing, shaking hands with the opponent is a mandatory part of the sport's etiquette, and failure to do so typically results in a 'black card.'

Kharlan's action received support from the Ukrainian fencing federation (NFFU), with Mykhailo Illiashev, its president, stating, "We fully support Olga Kharlan in this situation. We are preparing a protest."

The incident is part of a broader context of tensions between Ukraine and Russia. Ukrainian athletes in other sports, such as tennis players Elina Svitolina and Marta Kostyuk, have also refused to shake hands with Russian and Belarusian opponents following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Ukrainian Sports Minister Vadym Huttsait described the incident as an "obvious provocation from the Russian side," suggesting that Smirnova deliberately provoked Kharlan by holding her hand up for an extended period.

The women's team sabre event is also set to begin on July 29. Kharlan is representing Ukraine at the championship after the country's sports ministry relaxed its rules to allow national sports teams to compete with Russian and Belarusian participants in various Olympic, non-Olympic, and Paralympic events. Smirnova, on the other hand, was competing as a neutral athlete.

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