Olympian Demands “Fairness” After DQ Takes Away Prize Money for Second Place

Bettina Fabian had already done the hard part. After 10 kilometers in the water, the Hungarian Olympian touched the finish in second place. Then came the news she never expected: her result was gone.

Fabian and fellow Hungarian Olympian Dávid Betlehem both finished on the podium at the European Aquatics Open Water Swimming Cup in Razanac, Croatia, only to be disqualified over their caps. Fabian’s second place would have brought €1,500 ($1708), while Betlehem’s third would have earned €1,000 ($1139). Instead, both left without their medals or prize money.

The situation quickly became more than a result-sheet issue. Fabian took to Instagram to explain why she believed the decision was unfair. According to her account, officials checked her Hungarian racing cap during registration, allowed her to continue, and never gave her a replacement. She said she then completed the race without realizing she had been disqualified.

“I can accept losing. I can accept being beaten,” Fabian wrote. But she drew the line at being allowed to race the full distance and then having her result removed afterward. “Athletes deserve fairness. Athletes deserve accountability. And athletes deserve the truth.”

The Hungarian swimmer also disputed the claim that she had been told her cap was not compliant and refused another one. She said that conversation never happened. Her protest was subsequently rejected, leaving her even more frustrated. She ended the post with a blunt message to the continental governing body: “Shame on you, European Aquatics.”

The controversy did not stop with Fabian. Betlehem, the Olympic bronze medalist, found himself caught in a similar situation during the men’s 10km race.

The dispute over swimming caps is not entirely new. A similar issue surfaced in South Korea in 2025, when the Seoul Administrative Court upheld the disqualification of a student-athlete during a university entrance examination.

The athlete, a water polo player, challenged the decision after officials disqualified him for wearing a cap bearing his high school emblem. He argued that the rules prohibited names or school affiliations on swimsuits, not specifically on swimming caps. The court, however, ruled that a swimming cap could reasonably be considered part of a swimsuit under the conventional meaning of the term.
That case involved a different competition and set of circumstances, but it showed how something as simple as a cap can become a serious eligibility issue when officials strictly interpret equipment rules.

In Razanac, however, the Hungarian swimmers’ frustration centers on something else: they maintain that they were either not properly informed of the cap issue or, in Betlehem’s case, were allowed to continue racing after the problem had supposedly been identified.

What did Bettina Fabian’s compatriot say about the decision?

According to the Hungarian Swimming Association’s account, Betlehem received a white cap containing the European Aquatics sponsor marking and wrote “HUN” on it. A technical delegate later indicated that the cap needed to be turned around because the sponsor inscription was required on one side and the Hungarian identification on the other. Betlehem said he did not understand the instruction before the start.

He then continued racing and was shown a red flag on the second lap while leading. The Hungarian federation said Betlehem eventually reached the referee’s boat, where he was told to continue. He went on to finish third, only to learn afterward that he had been disqualified.

That detail became a major source of frustration for the 21-year-old. Rather than simply accepting the lost medal, Betlehem said he planned to consult lawyers about what happened.

Both swimmers also paid the €500 ($569) protest fee required under the competition rules and challenged the decisions. Their protests did not change the outcome.

For Betlehem, the disappointment went beyond losing a place on the podium. He questioned why he was allowed to complete the race after the officials had identified an issue with his cap.

The Hungarian Swimming Association said the European Cup rules require caps to meet international federation standards, while the official explanation for the disqualifications reportedly relied on information given during the technical meeting.

Fabian later shared her compatriot’s frustration on Instagram, pointing out that Betlehem had also lost both his medal and prize money. She said officials told them, “Don’t take it personally,” then added a laughing emoji before asking what the sport was coming to.

Meanwhile, the actual races had produced dramatic finishes. Italy’s Dario Verani waited until the final stretch before surging past the field to win the men’s 10km in 1:52:19.51. In the women’s race, Poland’s Klaudia Tarasiewicz pulled away late to claim victory.

Yet the podium celebrations were overshadowed by the Hungarian pair’s disqualifications.

Fabian had entered the race after winning European silver in Paris earlier this year, while Betlehem arrived with Olympic medal pedigree of his own. European Aquatics had promoted both as leading additions to the Razanac field before the event.

Now, instead of leaving Croatia with medals and prize money, the two Hungarians are left with an unresolved dispute over something as small as the positioning of a swimming cap.

And for Fabian, that is precisely what makes the episode so difficult to accept. She was not questioning defeat. She was questioning how the race was handled.
Her message was simple: if athletes are expected to follow every rule, they also expect the officials enforcing those rules to provide clarity before the race – not after the final touch.

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