The president of the Russian Olympic Committee, Stanislav Pozdnyakov, spoke on the Rossiya 24 channel about the departure of Sergei and Violetta Bida from Russia and their stated goal of pursuing American citizenship. He explained the decision and admitted his own sense of shame over the situation.
“The men acted hastily and did something wrong. I am truly ashamed that these athletes were in the national team while I held a leadership role in the fencing federation. This is where I recognize my own shortcomings”, said the PRC chairman, reflecting publicly on the matter.
Media outlet USA Today reported that Sergei Bida, along with Konstantin Lokhanov, a former saber fencer for Russia, plan to compete for the United States at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. At the same time, Sergei Bida’s wife, Violetta Bida, will be unable to participate in the Games due to pregnancy.
On December 26, authorities in Russia placed the spouses on a wanted list, with potential penalties of up to ten years in prison. The incident pertains to epee fencers who are active officers of the Russian Guard and active military personnel, who competed in the U.S. Championship without authorization from Russian authorities.
Sergei Bida is an epee fencer, a silver medalist in the team event at Tokyo 2020, a three-time European champion (including team events), and a two-time World Championship medalist (silver in the team event and bronze in 2020).
Violetta Bida (born Khrapina) earned a silver medal in the team epee at the 2019 World Championships and also took part in Tokyo 2020, though she did not win medals there.
In earlier remarks, Elena Vyalbe referred to the fencers who left for the United States as fools, a description aimed at the behavior of some Russian fencers who chose to pursue opportunities abroad.