Amid Gender Disparity Hiatus at Paris Olympics, Team USA’s Fencing Team Calls Out ‘Impartiality and Fairness of the Competition’

The Paris Olympics 2024 are just around the corner, and the adrenaline rush is getting real with each passing day. The teams are gearing up to give it all on the French turf, but it looks like the fencing domain is having trouble finding equal ground among the male and female athletes before the competition.

To add more to it, in a recent turn of events, it was reported that the USA fencing team has raised concerns about the unfair and biased judgment of the competition, which can ultimately hamper their Olympic qualifications as well. They have also called on the authorities to examine the situation and conduct an investigation into the concerns.

Pre-Paris Olympics 2024 update falls short of fans’ expectations

As per the reports from USA Today, on February 14, Rob Koehler, director general of Global Athlete, sent a letter to Emmanuel Katsiadakis, the interim president of the International Fencing Federation (FIE), on behalf of the fencers, in which he mentioned the athlete’s worries. The letter makes mention of a Bulgarian referee’s decisions that were supposed to be in favor of a US athlete.

“With the Olympic qualification upon us, we kindly ask that you investigate these allegations to ensure the rightful fencers have the opportunity to attend the 2024 Olympic Games,” Koehler states. He also added that these allegations raise an eyebrow about the impartiality and fairness of the competition. However, there is no solid proof of any cheating or anything as such.

But as per Koehler’s statement, these allegations put the “integrity of a sport” in question, so it should not be overlooked and needs immediate action. These claims from the fencers also hold crucial significance because the points scored in these matches also become the deciding factor for an athlete’s Paris Olympics 2024 qualifications. It looks like USA Fencing has interfered in the matter.

A Glimmer of hope for the fencers

USA Fencing has agreed to the fencers concerns, and they have also lodged an independent probe to identify the culprits. “We are taking these allegations seriously, and this comprehensive investigation addresses concerns raised and seeks to find the truth,” Phil Andrews, the CEO of USA Fencing, said in his statement. He also assured the athletes about transparency and stated that they were fully committed to the whole USA fencing community.

The investigating team will submit their report soon and will be sharing the findings as well. However, the International Fencing Federation has yet to respond to the letter that Koehler and the athletes have sent, so they have also forwarded it to Kit McConnell, the sport director for the International Olympic Committee, and they have also not reacted to it yet. Let’s hope and wish everything goes fine and fencers get a fair and impartial judgment on the issue.

Read More: USA’s Fencing Stars Shine Bright on Foreign Soil With 2 Podium Finishes at the Cairo World Cup