The European Fencing Confederation suspended the Russian Federation and Belarus
The European Fencing Confederation (EFC), in the context of Russia’s war against Ukraine, suspended the membership of the fencing federations of the Russian Federation and Belarus. Athletes from these two countries will still not be able to participate in tournaments and other events under the auspices of the confederation, decided on Saturday, June 24, the organization’s congress in Krakow, Poland.
The corresponding proposal of the Ukrainian Fencing Federation was supported by the majority of the 43 member countries of the confederation. At the same time, fencers from Russia and Belarus can participate neutrally in tournaments of the International Fencing Federation (FIE).
Postponement of qualifying tournaments
After fencers from these two countries were suspended from European championships, the FIE urgently transferred some European tournaments from Poland to Bulgaria, important for qualifying for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
At the same time, the European team championship will start, as planned, on June 29 in Krakow, since, on the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee, the Russian and Belarusian teams basically cannot participate in the competition. At the European Championships, Russians and Belarusians are completely banned from participating in all sports.
Source: DW
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