Ukrainian Olympian disqualified over images of war dead on his helmet

Ukraine's Vladyslav Heraskevych takes part in the skeleton men's training session at Cortina Sliding Center on Wednesday. His helmet bears the faces of athletes killed in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Tiziana Fabi/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Tiziana Fabi/AFP via Getty Images

MILAN — The International Olympic Committee has disqualified Ukrainian sled racer Vladyslav Heraskevych from the Milan Cortina Games. Heraskevych insisted on wearing a helmet painted with the faces of Ukrainian athletes killed by Russia since the full-scale invasion in 2022.

Heraskevych, who races in the skeleton discipline, said on social media he believes the IOC was unfair in its ruling Monday that the "memorial" helmet violates a ban on political speech during the Games.

"Hard to put into words, emptiness," Heraskeyvch said on Thursday, after learning that he would be prevented from racing. He added that he believed Ukrainian athletes killed during Russia's invasion deserved to be honored on the Olympic stage.

"I believe they deserve this moment. Certainly, I do not get my moment at this Olympics, despite, I would say, pretty good results in the training runs. I really believe we could be among the medalists today and tomorrow, but we will not be able to race," Heraskeyvich added.

Early Thursday, the IOC issued a statement saying Heraskevych would not be allowed to compete in skeleton races today in Cortina. "The decision followed his refusal to comply with the IOC's guidelines on athlete expression," the statement said.

In a signal of how high-profile this dispute has become, the president of the IOC, Kirsty Coventry, also addressed the decision to ban Heraskevych.

"I want to say thank you to Vladyslav and his dad, Mykhailo. They took the time to come in and talk with me this morning. I was not meant to be here, but felt that it was really important to come and talk to him face-to-face," Coventry said.

According to Coventry, athletes have signaled clearly that they want Olympians to be able to speak openly about political concerns, but not on the field of competition, where Heraskevych would have worn his helmet. "They also asked us to keep certain areas — so the field of play, the podium, and the Olympic village — safe ones," she said.

After the IOC ruled that the paintings of war dead on Heraskevych's helmet constituted a political statement, Olympic officials scrambled to negotiate a compromise. They offered to allow him to wear a black armband, which the Ukrainian refused.

"Sadly, we've not been able to come to that solution. I really wanted to see him race today. It's been an emotional morning," Coventry said.

Posting on Instagram after he was excluded from competition, Heraskevych said, "This is the price of our dignity." He has argued that the IOC has allowed other athletes to show demonstrations of grief during the Olympic Games. "I see big inconsistencies in decisions, in the wording, in the press conferences of the IOC, and I believe it's the biggest problem that it's inconsistent," he said.

Heraskevych drew support in his bid from Ukrainians, including President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The clash over the images on Heraskevych's helmet comes during a winter when Ukraine has been hit hard by Russian strikes, leaving communities without power and heat for extended periods.

Mykhailo Heraskevych, left, Vladyslav Heraskevych's father, reacts after his son was disqualified. Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images

Russia faces strict restrictions on competition at the Olympics because of its invasion. Only 13 Russian nationals are competing at the Milan Cortina Games as independent athletes.

Heraskevych is a serious medal contender in skeleton racing — a high-speed sport where athletes hurtle face-forward down an icy track — at the Milan Cortina Games. He finished fourth at last year's world championships.