The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on July 28 awarded Ukrainian fencer Olha Kharlan a place in the Paris Olympics after she was disqualified at the World Fencing Championships for refusing to shake her Russian opponent's hand.
Ukrainian Minister of Youth and Sports Vadym Gutzeit announced the IOC decision, quoting a letter from IOC President Thomas Bach addressed to Kharlan.
In the letter, Bach expresses support for the Ukrainian athlete, who was disqualified by the International Fencing Federation (FIE) on July 27 after refusing to shake the hand of Anna Smirnova after defeating her in the individual saber bout.
"Given your unique situation, the IOC will allocate you an additional place at the 2024 Paris Olympics in case you fail to qualify in the remaining period," Bach said in the letter.
"Rest assured the IOC will continue to stand in full solidarity with the Ukrainian athletes and the Olympic community of Ukraine during these extremely difficult times," it added.
The Fencing Federation of Ukraine (NFFU) had announced an appeal of the decision to disqualify Kharlan at the World Championships, which are being held in Milan, Italy.
The FIE later on July 28 reinstated Kharlan at the World Championships, a decision that will allow Kharlan to take part in the team competition.
Gutzeit noted that work continues to remove the "black card" for Kharlan’s future competitions and to prevent similar situations in other sports.
Kharlan violating fencing’s rules when she refused to shake the hand of Smirnova, who was competing as a neutral athlete. She instead offered Smirnova a touch of her saber’s blade.
Smirnova was furious over the handshake snub and her defeat and refused to leave the arena for more than 30 minutes after the incident.
The IOC said earlier that international federations should show sensitivity when handling situations involving Ukrainian and neutral athletes from Russia.
