With tears in her eyes, saber fencer Olga Kharlan kissed her blue and yellow mask and, pointing to it, loudly spoke into the camera in Ukrainian: "We love you, Ukraine! This is for you, dear!"
The 33-year-old saber fencer has just won a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics, her fifth overall. With Kharlan's fifth medal over the span of 16 years, she tied the country's Olympic medal record. Only swimmer Yana Klochkova, who retired in 2008, has the same amount.
"This bronze medal is precious, considering what our country is going through," Kharlan told Suspilne Sport after finishing the individual event.
Olga Kharlan of Ukraine celebrates as she wins Olympic bronze medal, in Paris, France on July 29, 2024. (Aytac Unal/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The previous Olympic Games in Tokyo were a major upset for one of the most decorated saber fencers in history. Being the first seed, the Ukrainian lost in the first match to Chinese Yang Hengyu. That was the end of the Olympics for Kharlan, as Ukraine's renowned team failed to qualify for the team event.
Now, three years in, with Kharlan in peak form, the team is ready to bounce back.
Starting the new Olympic cycle at 17th place in the world ranking, without Kharlan, who put her career on hold, hardly anyone would have believed in 2021 that in three years, the Ukrainian national team would be competing in Paris as a top-three team in the world.
The team, victorious in 2008 and second in 2016, is now chasing another medal along with Kharlan, who is eyeing her record-breaking sixth Olympic medal.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
Reviving the broken team
After an unsuccessful performance at the Tokyo Olympics, Kharlan was out of fencing for almost six months. The Ukrainian national team, at the same time, began preparing for the 2024 Olympics, with constant changes in the team roster and winning no medals at top events.
Kharlan returned in May 2022 in time for the World Cup in Hammamet, Tunisia. But the search for the perfect Olympic four was still ongoing.
The new coach of the Ukrainian national team, Andrea Terenzio of Italy, sought to return Ukraine to the Olympic podium for the first time since 2016. But for this, he first needed to bring back the 2016 Olympic silver medalist, Alina Komashchuk, to the team.
After the Rio Olympics, Komaschuk had retired two times and had no plans to qualify for the Paris Games. She was seeking a job beyond sports.
Terenzio called Komaschuk before the team's first training camp in the fall of 2022 in Bologna and offered to return to the team, adding that if she didn't do it now, she would never have a chance to return for one last shot at gold.
"I talked to my parents, who said they would support my decision. So, I decided to go to Bologna," Komaschuk said.
"I left for a month (to Bologna) and did not take many things. And in the end, I came back for good. There was no turning back."
After three tough starts at the beginning of the 2022/23 season, the Ukrainian team of Kharlan, Komashchuk, as well as the silver medalist of the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games Olena Kravatska and the newcomer Yuliia Bakastova, won bronze at the World Cup in March 2023.
This medal was the renowned team's first since 2019, giving them a boost before the start of the Olympic qualification in April 2023.
Getting back into the race
Since 2004, Ukrainian fencers have won at least one medal in every following Olympics. In Tokyo, Ihor Reizlin secured the country's only medal in the sport, coming third in the men's epee.
Not exactly a powerhouse, trailing behind the top performers from Italy, France, Hungary, and Russia, Ukraine could always count on medals in one or two disciplines.
After a failed run in 2020, winning at the 2024 Paris Olympics was an uphill battle, with success not guaranteed.
The World Championships in Milan, a key Olympics qualification tournament, was overshadowed by scandal.
After winning the first match, Olga Kharlan refused to shake hands with Russia's Anna Smirnova, who was competing under a neutral flag. Following this move, the Ukrainian athlete was disqualified.
Kharlan criticized the decision of the International Fencing Federation (FIE), which Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov long-headed. Although Usmanov suspended his powers with the start of Russia's full-scale invasion and the imposition of Western sanctions in 2022, his team continued to work in the federation.
"I love this sport, but these people want to ruin everything: my life, my love for it, and my career in so many ways," Kharlan told Pianeta Scherma after the incident, adding: "I do not know what will happen next, but I realize that my participation in these World Championships is over, and my team will have to fence without me."
Kateryna Hodunova
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had to intervene on the direction of Thomas Bach, the committee's president, and retired fencer, who won the 1976 Olympics in men's team foil.
FIE allowed Kharlan to participate further in the World Championships, and the IOC allocated a special place quota for the Ukrainian athlete for the 2024 Olympics.
As a result, Ukrainian saber fencers took fourth place in the team event and gained 72 points to the world ranking, retaining good chances of traveling to Paris.
"We just must go out there, fence, and do what we can. And we can do a lot," Kharlan told Suspilne Sport ahead of the start of the Olympic season.
All eyes on Paris
Under Terenzio's supervision, the Ukrainian national team reserved a place quota for the 2024 Olympics at the last minute. Ukraine achieved this by winning silver at the World Cup in Athens in March 2024 and entering the top three of the Olympic qualifying ranking.
"When the coaches told us that we had a place quota, the girls did not believe it yet, they were counting all the options," Kravatska said.
At the Olympics in Paris, Ukraine will be among the four strongest teams in the world, including France, Hungary, and the Republic of Korea.
The women's saber team event is scheduled for Aug. 3. Ukraine's national team will face Italy in their first match, kicking off at 1 p.m. local time.
"I still cannot believe (that I won the bronze medal) because the goal has not been achieved yet," Kharlan wrote on her Instagram ahead of the team event.
Kateryna Hodunova
