(Bloomberg) -- Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov was elected as president of the International Fencing Federation on Saturday, returning to the job he left after being sanctioned by the US and the European Union over Russia’s full-scale invasion on Ukraine.
Usmanov, 71, a former competitive fencer, ran the Lausanne, Switzerland-based federation, known as FIE, from 2008 and donated millions of dollars to support the sport. He suspended his duties in March 2022, citing sanctions against him, while pleading to fight in the courts against “defamatory allegations.”
The tycoon became a candidate to once lead the federation in October, when 103 out of 156 country-members, including several EU nations, supported his candidacy. In a ballot on Saturday in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent, Usmanov got 120 votes against 26 for Jan Sten Otto Drakenberg, 58, a Swedish Olympic fencer turned business executive, the Tass newswire reported.
“I am grateful to the international fencing family for their trust and support, which convinced me that my decision to run for the FIE presidency is the right one,” Usmanov said in a statement on Saturday.
Usmanov founded the Russia-based investment group USM, which controls iron ore miner Metalloinvest. He has a fortune of about $13 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires index.
The Russian was once was an investor in the English football team Arsenal F.C., while USM was a sponsor of Everton F.C. before 2022. Usmanov is an honorary citizen of Uzbekistan, where he was born.
After stepping down from FIE he focused on fighting in European courts with media outlets that linked him to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and managed to win those cases. However his appeal against EU sanctions wasn’t successful.
This month, German prosecutors dropped a money laundering investigation against him; the case was settled without Usmanov admitting guilt, but after he paid €4 million ($4.2 million) to the government and charities.
As long as sanctions remain in place, Usmanov won’t be able to work in FIE’s Swiss headquarters or travel to many international tournaments, including the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
“I will continue to take all necessary measures to prevent the legally unfounded restrictions imposed on me being extended to the FIE and its activities,” Usmanov said.
Russians ran several sporting federations before the war with Ukraine. Billionaire Vladimir Lisin, who’s not under major sanctions, was the head of Munich-based International Shooting Sport Federation though December 2022, when he lost a vote to an Italian candidate.
One who remains in his post is Umar Kremlev, who’s been president of Lausanne-based International Boxing Association since 2020.
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