Ukrainian fencer hailed as a hero after beating her Russian opponent, refusing to shake her hand, and getting kicked out of the tournament

• Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan was disqualified after refusing to shake her Russian opponent's hand.
• Her gesture has garnered massive support in Ukraine, which has called for a reversal of the ruling.

A Ukrainian fencer who was disqualified after beating her Russian opponent and then refusing to shake her hand has inspired massive support from onlookers, especially back home.

Olga Kharlan beat Russian player Anna Smirnova 15-7 at the World Fencing Championships in Milan on Thursday. But instead of shaking hands after the match, as the sport normally mandates, Kharlan offered her blade — known as a sabre — to tap against Smirnova's.

The gesture sparked a 45-minute standoff as Smirnova, who was competing under a neutral flag, refused to leave.

Tensions have grown between Russian and Ukrainian athletes since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Initially, judges showed Kharlan moving forward to the final 32, but later her result was wiped from the record and she was disqualified.

According to the BBC, Kharlan claimed that Emmanuel Katsiadakis, the head of the sport's governing body, the International Fencing Federation (FIE), told her beforehand that it would be "possible" to touch blades instead of shaking hands.

"I thought I had his word, to be safe, but apparently, no," she said, per the BBC.

Katsiadakis did not immediately respond to telephone and email messages from Insider.

This video, shared by Ukrainian-American activist Igor Sushko, shows the moment of the interaction:

In a statement posted to Instagram, Kharlan later called for a rule change.

"I did not want to shake hands with this athlete, and I acted with my heart. So when I heard that they wanted to disqualify me it killed me so much that I was screaming in pain," she said, according to Reuters' translation.

The post had more than 120,000 likes at the time of publication.

The head of the Ukrainian fencing team, Natalya Konrad, claimed that at the last minute, judges changed a COVID-era rule allowing players to touch weapons, Ukrainska Pravda reported. Per the outlet, Konrad said FIE had been under pressure from Russian officials.

Kharlan's gesture has been fiercely supported in Ukraine, with Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba comparing Smirnova's behavior to the battlefield tactics of Russia.

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal also tweeted, urging the FIE to reverse the decision.

Ukraine has questioned Smirnova's neutrality, with Ukrainian presidential advisor Mikhailo Polodyak posting what he said was a picture of Smirnova offering a "V for victory" sign alongside a Russian soldier.

The woman pictured resembles Smirnova's official portrait on the FIE website.

Kharlan has previously opposed the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in international competitions. In March she shared a video featuring herself and other Ukrainian athletes urging the exclusion of athletes from these countries in the 2024 Olympics.

"Under the white flag you can't hide Bucha, Irpin, Mariupol, Kramatorsk, Kremenchuk, Vinnytsia, Dnipro, my native Mykolaiv and all the peaceful cities that are under the gun of Russia," she said.