Ukraine denounced a decision to ban skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych from the Winter Olympics on Thursday, February 12, after he refused to back down over his banned helmet, which depicted victims of Russia’s invasion of his country.
Heraskevych, 27, had insisted he would continue to wear the helmet, which carries pictures of Ukrainian sportsmen and women killed since Russian forces invaded Ukraine in 2022, during the men’s skeleton heats on Thursday. But the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said Heraskevych had been kicked out of the Milan-Cortina Games after failing “to adhere to the IOC athlete expression guidelines.” Gestures of a political nature during competition are forbidden under the Olympic charter.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later said that the decision to ban Heraskevych from the Winter Olympics plays “into the hands of aggressors.” Heraskevych has appealed his disqualification to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, CAS confirmed on Thursday.
IOC says it tried to offer him other options
The IOC said in a statement on Thursday that the skeleton racer’s accreditation for the Games had been withdrawn. “Having been given one final opportunity, skeleton pilot Vladylsav Heraskevych from Ukraine will not be able to start his race at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games this morning,” the IOC statement said.
The IOC added that: “The decision followed his refusal to comply with the IOC’s Guidelines on Athlete Expression. It was taken by the jury of the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) based on the fact that the helmet he intended to wear was not compliant with the rules.”
Athletes are permitted to express their views in press conferences and on social media, and, on Tuesday, the IOC said it would “make an exception” for Heraskevych, allowing him to wear a plain black armband during competition. “Mr Heraskevych was able to display his helmet in all training runs,” the IOC said. “The IOC also offered him the option of displaying it immediately after the competition when going through the mixed zone.”
Olympic chiefs also said that IOC President Kirsty Coventry had spoken with Heraskevych on Thursday morning in a last-ditch attempt to persuade him change his mind before his competition. Coventry was in tears after the meeting, according to video images. “The president was very emotional about this because she invested a great deal of time in getting the athletes’ expression guidelines over the line,” IOC spokesperson Mark Adams told a briefing in Milan.
Adams told the IOC briefing: “We dearly wanted him to compete. It would have sent a very powerful message. “It is not about his message, it is not about the message he wanted to give, it is the place. We cannot have athletes having pressure put on them by their political masters.”
‘A moment of shame’
The Ukrainian racer told reporters at the Cortina Sliding Centre that he believed the decision was “totally wrong.” “Especially when we had already in this Olympic Games other cases, when athletes in almost equal situations were treated differently and didn’t face any sanctions,” he said. “I have really bad thoughts, and I believe that this situation also plays along with Russian propaganda,” he added.
After the IOC decision, he posted a message saying, “This is price of our dignity,” alongside a picture of the headwear.
Kyiv reacted with fury to the decision to ban Heraskevych, with Ukraine’s Sports Minister Matviy Bidnyi threatening legal action.
President Zelensky also took aim at the IOC. “The Olympic movement should help stop wars, not play into the hands of aggressors,” the Ukrainian president said in a post on social media. “We are proud of Vladyslav and of what he did. Having courage is worth more than any medal.”
Ukraine’s National Olympic Committee backed its athlete. “He had all of Ukraine with him, and always will. Because when an athlete stands up for truth, honor, and memory, that is already a victory,” it said on social media.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga also slammed the IOC. “The IOC has banned not the Ukrainian athlete, but its own reputation. Future generations will recall this as a moment of shame,” he said in a post on X. “He simply wanted to commemorate fellow athletes killed in war. There is nothing wrong with that under any rules or ethics.”
At the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, Heraskevych displayed a banner that read “No War in Ukraine,” written in yellow and gold, just days before Russia launched its invasion of its neighbour.