Getting a comment from Olga Kharlan after the general press conference seemed impossible. And no wonder! She’s a six-time Olympic champion and one of the world’s top fencers. The French press follows her triumphs with particular envy, given that France is considered the world’s fencing powerhouse.
“Do you love gold?” a TF1 reporter asked Olga. “Of course! – she joked – I even have gold earrings!” Then she became serious: “I dedicate my victories to the memory of the 479 Ukrainian athletes killed by the Russians.”
Sports commentators generally avoid talking about the war. It’s summer, a time for celebration, competitions, medals… But Ukrainian victories give our athletes a chance to remind the world that just 3,500 kilometres from Paris, Ukraine is enduring a deadly war. The battered stands of the Kharkiv stadium, where CNN reported their stand-ups, also serve as a grim reminder.
“Are you in touch with Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines?” a colleague from the French daily newspaper La Croix asked Kharlan. “Yes, constantly,” the champion replied. “They regularly write to me on messaging apps, saying that I inspire them. But in reality, it’s they, our defenders, who inspire me! All my victories are dedicated to our fighters. By the way, over the years of the war, more than three thousand Ukrainian athletes have joined the military.”
Olga says she doesn’t plan to return to politics, calling her brief experience as a deputy “a bad idea.” “Minister of Sport? – Kharlan laughed in response to her colleague’s suggestion. – No, thank you!” Olga Kharlan doesn’t regret refusing to shake hands with the Russian fencer Anna Smirnova a year ago. That gesture almost cost her further participation in the World Championship in Italy, sparked a huge scandal, but also made her globally recognizable. According to Olga, this episode contributed to the Russian team’s exclusion from the games. Since then, Ukrainian athletes have not been shaking hands with “neutral” athletes either, but the judges have become accustomed to it.
Is sport really outside of politics? We can tell ourselves comforting stories, but the world—a harsh, adult world—operates by its own often quite archaic rules. Winners are celebrated everywhere, and those who remain indomitable earn respect. Olga Kharlan has managed to embody this image, undoubtedly boosting the goodwill toward her country.
The French audience has genuinely come to love Olga. During her matches, Ukrainian flags filled the stands in numbers even Ukrainians might struggle to match. “Olga-a-a, Olga-a-a!” the crowd chanted, emphasising the last syllable. Human emotions truly are a kind of alchemy.
“Olga Kharlan: Gold Medal and Symbol of Ukrainian Resistance” – this was the headline for a segment on French radio RFI. “Imposing, masterful,” – French colleagues lavished praise. “The final was a masterpiece worthy of the Grand Palais des Beaux-Arts: the four-time world champion scored nearly half of her team’s hits (22) and conceded only ten,” RFI commented enthusiastically.
With her victory in the team competition, Olga Kharlan secured her sixth medal, making her the most decorated Ukrainian Olympic champion. They say the Barbie doll created in her likeness remains in constant demand. The Ukrainian dream? Why not? Olga Kharlan grew up in Mykolaiv in a working-class family. She joined the sabre fencing section as a schoolgirl “because it was free,” she admitted to journalists in Paris. “I support the club system, and I really want every regional centre in Ukraine to have a professional club where future fencers can train. I think about it often,” she added.
