PARIS: Ukraine has won its first gold medal of the Paris Olympics by defeating South Korea in the final of the women’s team saber fencing on Saturday.
The Ukrainian team recovered from six points down to beat South Korea 45-42 on 22 points from individual bronze medalist Olga Kharlan. She came in for the final leg of the bout with her team at 40-37 down and went 8-2 to win.
Ukraine had two medals before Saturday’s final; a silver in shooting from Serhiy Kulish and the bronze that Kharlan won Monday in women’s saber.
That was a particularly emotional moment for Kharlan, a year after she was disqualified at the world championships for refusing to shake the hand of a Russian fencer, something which briefly put her Olympic qualification in jeopardy.
It was an incident that highlighted the tension over whether to allow Russian athletes to keep competing following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Five-time Olympian Kharlan has her sixth Olympic medal in a career that began with women’s team saber gold at the 2008 Olympics, when she was 17.
Japan beat France 45-40 for the bronze medal even though the French team had individual gold medalist Manon Apithy-Brunet and silver medalist Sara Balzer.
![]()
Ukraine wins its first gold medal of the Paris Olympics in women’s team saber fencing
Short Url
https://arab.news/bryhs
Ukraine wins its first gold medal of the Paris Olympics in women’s team saber fencing
- The Ukrainian team recovered from six points down to beat South Korea 45-42 on 22 points from individual bronze medalist Olga Kharlan
- She came in for the final leg of the bout with her team at 40-37 down and went 8-2 to win
Play suspended at Australian Open over extreme heat: organizers
- Among the matches held up was the third-round clash between defending champion Jannik Sinner and the American Eliot Spizzirri at Rod Laver Arena
MELBOURNE: Australian Open organizers suspended play Saturday in Melbourne because of extreme heat forecast to hit 40C, before some matches resumed under roofs.
Among the matches held up was the third-round clash between defending champion Jannik Sinner and the American Eliot Spizzirri at Rod Laver Arena.
It resumed after about 10 minutes following the closure of the roof.
“Play is suspended for all matches and practice on outside courts,” the tournament said on X.
Roofs on the courts that have them “will close and remain closed for the remainder of the match.”
Players, spectators and officials roasted on day seven at Melbourne Park.
The tournament has a Heat Stress Scale of 1-5, with five the highest.
It hit five in the early afternoon, prompting the suspension.
Among the matches held up was the third-round clash between defending champion Jannik Sinner and the American Eliot Spizzirri at Rod Laver Arena.
It resumed after about 10 minutes following the closure of the roof.
“Play is suspended for all matches and practice on outside courts,” the tournament said on X.
Roofs on the courts that have them “will close and remain closed for the remainder of the match.”
Players, spectators and officials roasted on day seven at Melbourne Park.
The tournament has a Heat Stress Scale of 1-5, with five the highest.
It hit five in the early afternoon, prompting the suspension.
Latest updates
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.