GENEVA, June 2. /TASS/. The International Fencing Union (FIE) has scrapped all previously imposed restrictions on Russian and Belarusian national fencers, allowing them to compete in international tournaments under the national flag and to the tune of the country’s anthem, the FIE said in a statement on Tuesday.
Russian athletes are now allowed to participate under the colors and national symbols of their country at the 2026 FIE World Championships in China’s Hong Kong on July 22-30.
The next international fencing competition, however, is the 2026 European Fencing Championships in France on June 16-21, and the European Fencing Confederation is yet to make a decision regarding the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in that event.
"In December 2025, the FIE was one of the first international Olympic sports federations to allow Russian juniors and cadets to participate in its tournaments without restrictions," Russian Sports Minister and President of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) Mikhail Degtyarev stated on his Telegram channel.
"Exactly at that time, our fencers began showing decent results at the junior stages of the World Cup - the flag was raised many times and the anthem of the Russian Federation was played," he continued.
