Russia threatens fencing boycott after Olympic champions excluded from competition

The president of the Russian Olympic Committee indicated Thursday that the country could boycott qualifying competitions in fencing for next year's Paris Games after some athletes, including his own daughter, were barred from competing.

The International Olympic Committee recommends letting competitors from Russia and Belarus compete as neutral athletes without national symbols after the invasion of Ukraine, but still excluding those employed by the military or security services, or those who have publicly backed the war.

Two-time gold medallist Yana Egorian and all three of the gold medallists in women's team saber from the Tokyo Olympics — Sofya Velikaya, Olga Nikitina and Sofia Pozdniakova — were refused after vetting from the International Fencing Federation, Russian Fencing Federation president Ilgar Mamedov told state news agencies.

Some lesser-known fencers were approved to compete, Mamedov said. But he didn't say why the other fencers were refused and there was no immediate confirmation from the International Fencing Federation, known as the FIE.

All three of the women's team saber gold medallists were identified as being affiliated with the Central Sports Club of the Army, known as CSKA, in a 2021 statement on the Russian Defense Ministry website following the Tokyo Olympics. It listed Velikaya with the rank of captain and Nikitina as a sergeant. They and Egorian are all listed in profiles on the FIE website with the term "armed forces athlete."

The FIE decisions showed IOC criteria for the return of Russian and Belarusian athletes to be a "farce" and a "thinly veiled suspension" which amounted to discrimination, Pozdnyakov wrote in posts on the Telegram app.

"The International Olympic Committee is imposing such