QUARANTINED

Fencing Alternate Kept Separate From Team USA Over Sexual Assault Allegation

Alen Hazdic was suspended from competition in June but later won reinstatement. He denies the allegations against him.

An alternate for Team USA’s Olympic fencing squad has been quarantined from his fellow athletes throughout the run-up to the Tokyo 2020 games. He flew to the games on a separate plane and is barred from staying in the Olympic Village. The cause of Alen Hazdic’s separation from the rest of the team has not been the coronavirus, however. Hazdic, a 29-year-old épée fencer, has been accused of sexual assault by three women in incidents ranging from 2013 to 2015. One alleges he grabbed her backside and pushed her against a dresser in his home. He was suspended from competition on June 2 but appealed and won reinstatement June 29. Hazdic said of the allegations, “They’re just frankly not true.”