The head of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), Stanislav Pozdnyakov, emotionally commented on the demand of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to ban fencer Anna Smirnova for life. Smirnova lost to Ukrainian Olga Kharlan in the round of 32 at the 2023 World Championships in Milan, and then staged a real circus, refusing to leave the track.

Pozdnyakov said that any political organisation to which the country's parliament belongs "can say anything and call for anything".

"It has no jurisdiction or competence over autonomous sports organisations, and the fact that such calls arise only shows the incompetence and stupidity of those people who make such decisions," the ROC president said in an interview with R-Sport propagandists.

As a reminder, following the World Cup scandal, the International Fencing Federation initially disqualified Kharlan, but suspended its decision the next day.

Our sabre fencer herself said that the decision to exclude her from the tournament simply killed her.

It is worth noting that Smirnova is not a "neutral" athlete, as required by the competition regulations. The representative of the aggressor country's brother is a military officer, and she is very proud of him, as can be seen from their joint photos.

After loud publicity in the world media, the IOC also responded to the scandal by making a sensational decision regarding the Ukrainian.

Later, video evidence emerged that Kharlan had been disqualified after Russian pressure on the tournament organisers

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