The International Fencing Federation allowed Russians and Belarusians to compete under their own flags

The Executive Committee of the International Fencing Federation (FIE) has lifted all restrictions on Russian and Belarusian athletes that had been in effect since February 2022.

This is stated in the FIE statement.

This means that fencers from Russia and Belarus will be able to compete in international competitions with their flags and anthems, starting with this yearʼs Senior World Championships in Hong Kong, China, which will be held from July 22 to 30.

The FIE says that they made this decision in light of the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee to lift all restrictions on Belarusian athletes. But there were no such instructions regarding Russians. Earlier, the International Gymnastics Federation also made a similar decision.

• Last year, the World Fencing Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia, allowed Russian Sofya Velikaya, a major in the Russian Armed Forces and Putinʼs confidant in the 2024 elections.
• After that, international fencers signed an open letter against the International Fencing Federationʼs simplification of the procedure for reviewing the "neutrality" of athletes and their admission to competitions on the same team.
• However, Ukrainian fencer Vlada Kharkova won gold at those competitions — she became the world fencing champion.

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