Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, who stepped down as president of the International Fencing Federation (FIE) after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, was re-elected to the post on Saturday.
Usmanov, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, won 120 votes to 26 for the other candidate, former Olympian Otto Drakenberg of Sweden, at the FIE's congress in the Uzbek capital Tashkent.
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The 71-year-old Uzbekistan-born businessman was one of dozens of Russian oligarchs hit by Western sanctions following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
But that did not stop him gaining firm support for the FIE presidency, a role to which he was first elected in 2008, and then again in 2012, 2016 and 2021.
Emmanuel Katsiadakis acted as interim president when Usmanov stood down.
No fencers from Russia or Belarus took part in the Paris Olympics, having last year rejected the "proposed return format" set out by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to come back to international competition.
The re-election of Usmanov drew criticism from Ukraine, with the country's Sports Minister Matviy Bidny saying he was "outraged" by the news.
"Alisher Usmanov is an oligarch close to the Russian dictator, subject to international sanctions, and a sponsor of the war against Ukraine," Bidny said on social media.
"His return to a leadership position in international sports is a direct affront to the values of humanity and sportsmanship, as well as to Ukrainians who are being tortured and killed by Russian occupiers."
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