Tbilisi Hosts World Fencing Championship Featuring Russian Military-Affiliated Athletes
Georgian sports officials called for separating sports from politics as the Tbilisi-hosted World Fencing Championship has drawn controversy for featuring Russian fencers, including at least three with active military ranks in the Russian army.
The international competition with more than 100 athletes takes place in the Georgian capital from July 22 to 30 and follows the July 11 decision by the International Fencing Federation to allow Russian and Belarusian fencers to compete as “neutral athletes” (AIN). The athletes must submit a “sworn declaration of neutrality” and pledge to support the organization’s “peace mission” to be allowed to participate.
Among the Russian participants are Major Sofya Velikaya, Lieutenant Yana Egorian, and Warrant Officer Olga Nikitina, who, according to media reports, have received state honors directly from Russian Leader Vladimir Putin.
The reports led to an international backlash towards the International Fencing Federation, including from the fencing community. Over 400 international fencers called in a July 17 letter on the Federation to reverse its decision and “resume thorough reviews and checks on every athlete applying for AIN status.” Olga Kharlan, top Ukrainian sabre fencer and five-time Olympic gold medalist, opted out of the competition after the FIE’s decision, slamming the presence of Russian athlete Sofya Velikaya.
“Sofya Velikaya – a major in the Russian army is not just a fencer. She is a tool of state propaganda, part of a massive machine that has justified war and violence for years,” Kharlan wrote on social media on July 8.
Velikaya, 40, was among 20 Russian public figures blacklisted by Ukraine for either supporting the full-scale invasion or maintaining close ties with sanctioned entities. She is also a member of CSKA, a sports club affiliated with the Russian military.
The presence of Russian athletes also sparked outrage among some Georgians, but sports officials dismissed the concerns while confirming that the athletes do, in fact, hold military ranks.
“We should separate sports from politics,” the president of the Georgian Fencing Federation, Meab Bazadze, told Formula TV as the host federation also faces backlash. He added that it was the FIE that decided to include the Russian athletes in the competition.
“I know they hold military ranks, but I’ve known these athletes for many years,” Bazadze said. “They are successful sportsmen, and I’ve never seen them holding a gun,” he added.
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