Four Iranian athletes pulled out of the 2009 Fencing World Championships in Antalya, Turkey on Friday.

Mohammad Hossein Ebrahimi withdrew from the foil weapon to refuse competing with an Israeli fencer.
Hamed Sedaghati and Seyyed Sadegh Abedi in epee pulled out of race so as not to compete with Israeli fencers as well.
Hamid-Reza Taherkhani, another Iranian fencer, in saber discipline refused to face the Israeli athlete.
Iran has not competed against Israel athletes since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Iran does not recognize Israel as a sovereign state and its athletes have always refused to compete alongside Israelis as a sign of solidarity with the Palestinians.
The 2009 Fencing World Championships started on September 30 at the Antalya Expo Center and will run till October 8