Ukrainian fencer Olha Kharlan was disqualified from the World Fencing Championships in Milan for refusing to shake hands with Russian opponent Anna Smirnova after winning their match 15:7
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Kharlan defeated Russia's Anna Smirnova 15:7 at the start of the tournament
After the match, she refused to shake Smirnova's hand, offering to bump sabres
Smirnova lodged a protest against Kharlan for not showing "respect" and stayed on the track for more than 50 minutes after the match
According to the rules of the International Fencing Federation, not showing respect is punished by a black card – disqualification from the tournament
Kharlan advanced to the next round in the live scoreboard and was supposed to meet the Bulgarian Yoana Ilieva, but was disqualified
The Ukrainian team tried to appeal the decision, but was unsuccessful
Kharlan won the match against Russian fencer Anna Smirnova on July 27
Kharlan was disqualified for not shaking hands with Russian opponent Anna Smirnova at the Fencing World Championships
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Extraction metadata
Extracted: 2026-05-30T04:21:14.405Z
Source story: 7413096