Alisher Usmanov is a familiar figure for the FIE. He has led the organization since 2008 and has been re-elected as federation head three times in a row without any competition. However, on March 1, 2022, he was forced to voluntarily suspend his presidency due to EU sanctions. Later, Thomas Bach even received a letter from a hundred FIE members requesting assistance in lifting the sanctions against Usmanov.
Now, with just a month remaining until the next elections, scheduled for November 30 at the organization’s congress in Tashkent, the interim president of the FIE is Emmanuel Katsiadakis from Greece.
Usmanov's candidacy for the presidency has been supported by the Russian Fencing Federation as well as over 100 other FIE member countries (the FIE comprises 156 nations). Alisher Usmanov has managed the international federation for many years and has accomplished a lot during this time. For instance, he implemented a program to assist national federations, significantly increased the annual budget, and expanded the representation of countries from 127 to 156. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, fencing featured not 10, but 12 medal events for the first time, with 6 individual and team medals. A video arbitration system was developed, along with a computerized referee assignment system, and the names of referees are announced less than half an hour before the bouts begin...
In light of Usmanov's candidacy, his recent legal victory has become even more significant. In Germany, the well-known ARD broadcaster, recognized in Russian sports for its doping allegations, published two articles and a video report about fencing at the Paris Olympic Games. The author was Hayo Zeppelt, the same journalist who has long been involved in investigations in Russia. Zeppelt accused Usmanov of creating a system for bribing fencing referees at the international level.
However, this time the evidence fell short. For example, ARD cited a match in the round of 16 of the Olympic tournament involving Georgian sabre fencer Sandro Bazadze, who lost to Egyptian Mohamed Amer (14:15) as one of the violations and pressures on referees for a desired outcome. In short, after his loss, the Georgian claimed that the refereeing was to blame.
But his father, the president of the Georgian Fencing Federation, later apologized to the FIE, citing his son’s emotional state. Merab Bazadze noted the “effective measures by the FIE to enhance the transparency” of refereeing in international bouts, including the widespread implementation of the “video arbitration system and automated referee selection system just before the start of the bout.” He emphasized that “in such a situation, statements about a supposed corruption system allegedly present within the FIE refereeing body, made by one German television channel referencing a former FIE referee,” are not just unethical but defamatory.
Alisher Usmanov filed a lawsuit in Hamburg and won. The channel was forced to retract its information. Usmanov went even further: he filed a complaint with the Cologne prosecutor's office against the investigative author, journalist Hayo Zeppelt, for defamation and slander.
Usmanov's renewed candidacy for the presidency is already being called an opportunity that FIE members must seize to allow the entire sport of fencing to develop and compete with other sports. For instance, two-time Olympic champion Sofya Velikaya stated that she will not rush to end her career. The message is clear: hope is returning.
…At the FIE congress in 2022, when Emmanuel Katsiadakis from Greece was confirmed as the interim president by a majority vote, the Swedish representative appeared quite disruptive. This incident is well-known. Drakenberg initially vehemently urged against voting for the interim president, to prevent Usmanov from having a chance in the future, and then attempted to disrupt the vote regarding Saudi Arabia as the host for the junior and cadet world championships. When the hall began to buzz, trying to stop his onslaught, he took off his shoe and started banging it on the microphone. Following this, the president of the Russian Fencing Federation, Ilgar Mamedov, who was presenting there, began his speech by asking the congress delegates to add mandatory mental competency tests to the required COVID tests.
Alisher Usmanov, as noted in a statement from his press service, expressed gratitude to each of the 103 federations and sports leaders who supported him after his official nomination for the presidency. However, he reminded that the president's election procedure is regulated by the organization's charter and “it is necessary to wait for the congress of the International Fencing Federation, which will take place at the end of November in Tashkent.”
As noted by Russian Minister of Sports Mikhail Degtyarev, such “massive support confirms that in the sports world, professional achievements and competencies still prevail over discriminatory principles regarding citizens of certain states.”
If such a number of federations supports the candidacy of a president who has suspended his powers, could anything prevent him from returning to his position? And a second question: is it already possible to run for the main post?
The victory in the world fencing elections, despite the warning from the main candidate, seems almost assured. However, the reaction that follows could range from positive to extremely negative. After all, creating problems for a specific international federation for disobedience is not an issue today. Moreover, sanctions continue.