Russian wrestler strikes gold at world championships in US

Alina Shevchenko defeated a Belarusian rival in Las Vegas as Russian athletes continue to face bans at major European events Russian wrestler Alina Shevchenko has struck gold at the Under-23 World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas, defeating a Belarusian rival in the women’s 68kg final.

Her triumph comes as European countries continue to shut top Russian athletes out of major international competitions despite clearance from sporting authorities.

Shevchenko defeated Belarusian wrestler Kseniya Tsiarenia in the women’s 68kg final on Friday.

Japan’s Rai Hoshino and Italy’s Laura Godino took bronze.

The championships, which began on October 12, run until Sunday.

The victory follows a decision in May by United World Wrestling (UWW) to lift all restrictions on Russian and Belarusian wrestlers, allowing them to compete internationally across all age categories under their national flags and anthems.

The move marked a major reversal of restrictions imposed after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, when Russian and Belarusian athletes were barred from numerous international events or forced to compete under neutral status.

Read more Kremlin accuses EU of anti-Russian bias in sports Russian competitors continue to face obstacles elsewhere, particularly in Europe, where several countries have denied entry to athletes despite their clearance by international sporting bodies.

Most recently, the Netherlands refused visas to three leading Russian gymnasts – Angelina Melnikova, Viktoria Listunova, and Anna Kalmykova – for the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam, scheduled for October 17-25.

The tournament is part of the qualification process for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“There are clear attempts by certain countries to influence the outcome of competitions by deliberately excluding the strongest,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday.

The Russian Gymnastics Federation condemned the Dutch decision as “direct discrimination,” saying the visa refusals violated the principle of equal conditions for Olympic qualification.

Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev announced plans to seek the removal of Rotterdam’s Olympic qualifying status.

The Dutch refusal is the latest in a string of incidents.