Vladyslav Heraskevych planned to hear a special helmet which features images of 24 Ukrainian athletes who’ve been killed during Russia’s invasion of his home country
Vladyslav Heraskevych wore his ‘helmet of memory’ in training(Image: Al Bello/Getty Images)
Ukraine’s Vladyslav Heraskevych has been disqualified from the Winter Olympics after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) refused to let him wear his ‘helmet of memory’. Heraskevych, a skeleton pilot, arrived in Milano Cortina with a specially-made helmet which features images of 24 deceased Ukrainian athletes who’ve died at the hands of Russia’s invasion.
The 27-year-old wore the helmet during a training session on Wednesday after being told that it wasn’t allowed. Despite making a plea to the IOC, the committee insists that the helmet is a political statement and have disqualified Heraskevych by revoking his Olympics accreditation.
Previously, the Ukrainian said that not wearing it would be betrayal to the athletes. Heraskevych now plans to lodge an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. “It’s hard to say or put into words. It’s emptiness,” he posted on X. “This is price of our dignity.”
His father and coach, Mykhailo, was present at the venue in in Corina d’Ampezzo and was in tears after hearing the news. The IOC said in a statement: “The decision followed his refusal to comply with the IOC’s Guidelines on Athlete Expression.
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“Despite multiple exchanges and in-person meetings between the IOC and Mr Heraskevych, the last one this morning with IOC president Kirsty Coventry, he did not consider any form of compromise. The IOC was very keen for Mr Heraskevych to compete.
“This is why the IOC sat down with him to look for the most respectful way to address his desire to remember his fellow athletes who have lost their lives following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The essence of this case is not about the message, it is about where he wanted to express it.”
Coventry, a Zimbabwean politician who was elected last year, had travelled to Cortina to hold talks with Heraskevych. “I was not meant to be here but I thought it was really important to come here and talk to him face to face,” Coventry said.
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“No one, especially me, is disagreeing with the messaging, it’s a powerful message, it’s a message of remembrance, of memory. The challenge was to find a solution for the field of play. Sadly, we’ve not been able to find that solution. I really wanted to see him race. It’s been an emotional morning.”
With less than two hours to go before the competition got underway, Heraskevych urged the IOC to lift his ban and demanded an apology. “I never wanted a scandal with the IOC, and I did not create it,” he argued. “The IOC created it with its interpretation of the rules, which many view as discriminatory.
“Although this scandal has made it possible to loudly speak about Ukrainian athletes who have been killed, at the same time the very fact of the scandal distracts a tremendous amount of attention away from the competitions themselves and from the athletes participating in them.”
However, the IOC rejected his suggestion. “Mourning is not expressed and perceived in the same way everywhere in the world,” they added.
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