Ukrainian MP and Olympic wrestling champion Zhan Beleniuk is convinced that the International Fencing Federation (FIE) acted underhandedly by disqualifying Ukrainian Olga Harlan. According to Beleniuk, initially, Harlan and the FIE had an agreement that provided for a refusal to shake hands with Russian Anna Smirnova.

"The most cynical thing in this story is that there was an agreement between Olga and the leadership of the international federation, which agreed on the absence of a handshake after the match," Beleniuk wrote on his Telegram channel.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, the famous Ukrainian fencer Olga Harlan defeated Russian Anna Smirnova in the round of 32 of the 2023 World Cup in Milan. After the fight, our compatriot refused to shake hands with her opponent, who staged a real circus by refusing to leave the track. The Russian representative lodged a protest against the result of the duel, which was rejected.

The propagandist TV channel Match TV published a photo of the denunciation that Anna Smirnova had written against Olga, and Russian Sports Minister Oleg Matitsyn called the FIE's decision to punish the Olympic champion from Mykolaiv the right one.

Smirnova herself is not a "neutral" athlete, as required by the competition regulations. Smirnova's brother is a military officer, and she is very proud of him, as can be seen from their joint photos.

The Ukrainian Fencing Federation is preparing a protest. However, the appeal will not be considered immediately, which means that the Beijing 2008 gold medallist will not be able to continue competing in the individual events at the tournament.

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