On October 27 local time, in the quarter-finals of the Women's 50 kg category at the World Wrestling Championships held in Astana, Kazakhstan, American wrestler Morgan Turner punched Russian athlete Elizabeth Smirnova twice in the eye during the match, resulting in her disqualification from the competition.
During the match, Smirnova led 8:3, and Turner tried to catch up in points. First, Turner hit Smirnova's right eye with his finger, resulting in a warning from the referee. Two minutes later, Turner inserted his finger directly into Smirnova's left eye, causing Smirnova to fall onto the mat. The referee stopped the game, and subsequently declared Smirnova the winner.
According to CNN, medical examinations revealed damage to Smirnoff's cornea. Although Smirnoff claimed that she believed she could continue the competition after dressing the wound, medical staff urged her to withdraw from the event.
Smirnova withdrew from the competition, allowing Indian wrestler Neeram Sirohi to advance directly to the semifinals without a fight. Later, Sirohi defeated Kazakhstani wrestler Zeynep Bayanova with a score of 7-3, becoming the second Indian female wrestler to reach the finals of the senior world championship.
