public after insisting that he retained the rights to Black and White. Lifar sent his seconds to Cuevas who refused to extend an apology and chose to duel with swords. As duels had been "technically outlawed" in the 17th Century, the time and location of the duel were not disclosed to the public. The duel was conducted in front of 50 newspaper photographers and ended with the two combatants in tears and embraces in what The New York Times wrote "what may well have been the most delicate encounter in the history of French dueling," with the sole injury being a cut on Lifar's right forearm in the seventh minute. In 1977 the Paris Opéra Ballet devoted a full evening to his choreography. Death He died in Lausanne, Switzerland in 15 December 1986, aged 81, and was buried in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery. Legacy Editions Sauret published his memoirs, titled Les Mémoires d'Icare, posthumously in 1993. The title references one of his greatest roles in the ballet Icare. "The story of the ballet is based on the ancient Greek myth of Icarus, whose father Daedalus builds him a pair of artificial wings. Disobeying his father's orders, Icarus flies too close to the sun, which melts the wax in his wings and causes him to plunge to his death." The Serge Lifar Foundation was set up on 23 August 1989 by Lifar's companion, Countess Lillan Ahlefeldt-Laurvig. In 2012, jewels from the Countess' estate were auctioned at Sotheby's, with the proceeds going to the Foundation. In the summer of 1994 the First Lifar International Ballet Contest was held on the stage of the National Ukraine Opera. The Sixth Lifar International Ballet Competition was held in April 2006 and the seventh in Donetsk in March–April 2011. Awards and honours Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur (1983) Books In 1935 Lifar published his confessio fidei ("confession of faith") titled Le manifesto du chorégraphe, proposing laws about the independence of choreography. Some of views include: He also wrote a biography of Diaghilev titled Serge Diaghilev, His Life, His Work, His Legend: An Intimate Biography published by Putnam, London, 1940. Cultural depictions Anna Pavlova, film by Emil Loteanu; portrayed by Igor Sklyar (1983). Further reading Mark Franko, "Serge Lifar and the Question of Collaboration with the German Authorities under the Occupation of Paris (1940-1949)," in Dance Research 35(2) (in French) (Winter 2017):