“FIE, How Much Did They Pay You?" Fencer Conrad Criticizes the International Federation Over Seeding Ukraine Against Russia at the 2025 Junior World Championship

Team Ukraine beat the 'neutral athletes,' 45:41.

Ukrainian epée fencer Emilie Conrad has criticized the International Fencing Federation (FIE) for seeding a 'neutral' team against Ukraine in the first round of the men's team event at the 2025 Junior World Championship in Wuxi. The athlete shared the story on her Instagram page.

The International Fencing Federation allowed athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete as 'neutrals' as early as the start of March 2023. After that, the FIE's disciplinary tribunal also refused to consider the Ukrainian federation's request to strip Russia's membership, leading Ukraine's fencing federation to file a complaint with CAS.

Russian and Belarusian athletes, meanwhile, continued fencing in individual events, and at the Junior World Championship in Wuxi, China, according to Ukrainian epée fencer Anna Maksymenko, they were allowed to compete in team events for the first time.

In the team event, Ukraine hadn't crossed paths with the 'neutral team' until the final competition day, but the day before the junior men's tournament began, that very pairing was seeded together in the first round.

How Emilie Conrad Reacted to Being Seeded Against 'Neutral' Athletes in the Team Event

Conrad has asked, pointedly, how much the FIE was paid, sharing a screenshot of the seeding and demanding they name a figure, so everyone would know the price of letting in a country that kills people on holidays by launching missiles into city centers, she has written. She has added that meanwhile, their athletes, who live in danger every single day, come to the World Championship and face Russians on the strip.

Ukraine — FIE at the 2025 Junior World Fencing Championship: Result

Team Ukraine, incidentally, beat the athletes competing under the FIE flag in the round of 32 — winning 45:41, thanks to Maksym Hula, Arsenii Karapysh, Maksym Mykytenko, and Maksym Perchuk.

Next, Oleh Sokolov's squad convincingly beat Saudi Arabia (45:28), and in the following match, narrowly edged out the second seed, the United States (43:42). The 'yellow-and-blues' were stopped in the quarterfinal, losing 45:32.

Other Ukrainian Results Against 'Neutral Athletes' at the 2025 Junior World Fencing Championship

• In the cadet sabre event, sixth-seeded Maiia Velychko lost to Belarus's Viktoriia Artiushenko in the first round (10:15).

• Artem Korzhovyi-Lerner, in the first round of the junior foil event, also lost to 'neutral' athlete Yahor Rabtsau, 15:6. In the next round, another Ukrainian, Yaroslav Muruhin, lost to the same opponent, 13:15.

• Svitlana Bryzghalova, in the second round of the junior foil event, couldn't get past 'neutral' athlete Polina Volobuieva (4:15). Hlib Mukhopad, in the cadet event with the same weapon, lost to Belarus's Yahor Sukhaletau in the round of 32 (3:15).

• Epée fencer Alina Dmytruk, in the round of 16 of the junior epée event, lost to 'neutral' athlete Anastasiia Iliushchenko (10:15), while Emilie Conrad, at the same stage, lost to Russia's Anastasiia Rustamova (6:15).

• Valeriia Bilous-Hrizhak, on the other hand, brought the team's first win against 'stateless' athletes — narrowly beating Sofiia Armahanova in the round of 16 of the cadet epée event, 15:14.

Incidentally, on the final competition day, Team Ukraine's women's epée squad reached the Junior World Championship final — beating the top-seeded U.S. team, 45:43, thanks to Emilie Conrad, Alina Dmytruk, and Anna Maksymenko.