A complaint has been filed by the Swedish Fencing Federation (SFF) to the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) integrity hotline, alleging that the FIE infringed the IOC Code of Ethics’ "Basic Universal Principles of Good Governance within the Olympic Movement" during its Ordinary Congress held in Swiss city Lausanne in November.

insidethegames has obtained a video from the heated meeting showing SFF President Otto Drakenberg being faced with several attempts by delegates to stop him from expressing his views against Saudi Arabia’s unchallenged bid to host 2024 Cadet and Junior World Championships.

Loud noises can be heard in the room in an attempt to drown out Drakenberg when he questioned how welcome LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) fencers will be in Saudi Arabia, whether there will be any restrictions on female participants and how secure the tournament will be in a country that is at war.

Egypt's FIE vice-president Abdelmoneim Elhamy El Husseiny also tried to interrupt Drakenberg, telling him to "stop it immediately" which was greeted by applause in the room but the Swedish official refused to give up on voicing his views.

"You should know who you are talking to Mr Elhamy because I will never refrain from speaking my word in a democratic world," said Drakenberg.

"We in the Swedish Federation urge the Congress not to take a decision before the questions I have just raised are answered.

"Therefore, the Swedish Federation suggests that the decision of this proposal be transferred by the Congress to the COMEX  [Executive Committee] who should be responsible for taking an informed decision or finding a replacement for the organisation of this championships.

"Upon taking this decision, the COMEX must communicate to all member federations its assessment of the risks that participate LGBTQ or female fencer will be subject to emotional suffering due to the legislation of the country where this championships are held and the risk and threats to the brand of fencing that the choice of organising federation will cause."

Per Palmström, the former vice-president of both the SFF and Swedish Olympic Committee, has now filed a complaint to the IOC's integrity hotline.

"The way President Drakenberg was treated by the FIE at the Congress in Lausanne on 26 November 2022 is a clear infringement of the Basic Universal Principle of Good Governance according to which all members shall have the right to express their opinion on the topics on the agenda," read the complaint.

Palmström also claimed that the FIE breached the IOC Code of Ethics for awarding the event without "assessing sustainable development criteria", including human rights and gender equality.

He argued that female and LGBTQ fencers will not travel to Saudi Arabia to participate in the World Championships "without running the risk of being discriminated and facing repression, legal challenges and even the death penalty".

Critics have accused the Saudi regime of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud of sportswashing and seeking to distract from its record on human rights, including the state-ordered assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, its role in the bombing in Yemen, harsh restrictions in place on women's rights and its use of the death penalty.

Women were not allowed to play sport, enter public football stadiums, or apply for a driver's licence in Saudi Arabia until 2018.

While there has been some reform in recent years, it is still the case that women must obtain permission from their male guardian to be married, leave prison or obtain access to sexual or reproductive healthcare.

Homosexuality and same-sex marriage are both outlawed according to the nation's uncodified Islamic law.

At the same FIE Congress, USA Fencing treasurer Sam Cheris has accused individuals of buying votes to influence the FIE decision on whether to reinstate athletes from Russia and Belarus.

Cheris, also President of the FIE Legal Commission and a member of honour at the world governing body, alleged that a representative from the International Charitable Foundation for the Future of Fencing, a sports charity based in Moscow and Alisher Usmanov, had been paying administrators to support a reversal on the ban of the two countries, currently suspended due to their Governments' involvement in the invasion of Ukraine.

Usmanov has temporarily stepped down as President of the FIE after he was placed on a European Union sanctions list for his alleged involvement in helping facilities Vladimir Putin's attack on Ukraine. 

insidethegames has contacted the FIE for comment about Palmström's complaint.