The Court of Arbitration for Sport has rejected the lawsuit of Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych against IOC.
This is stated in the court decision.
The statement said that while the arbitrator “sympathizes with the memory of Heraskevych and his attempt to draw attention to the grief and destruction experienced by the Ukrainian people and Ukrainian athletes as a result of the war”, she concluded that the IOC rules restricting the right to express an opinion during competitions were “reasonable and proportionate”.
The referee emphasized that the purpose of these rules is to maintain the focus of the Olympic Games on performance and sport.
Moreover, the arbitrator believes that revoking the Ukrainian skeleton athleteʼs accreditation at the Games was unfair, and she supported the IOCʼs decision to return it.
Why was Vladyslav Heraskevych disqualified?
Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych planned to start the first race of this yearʼs Olympic Games wearing a "memory helmet" depicting Ukrainian athletes who died due to Russian aggression. However, the International Olympic Committee did not allow it, stating that it violated the ban on political, racial or religious propaganda.
At the same time, Heraskevych stated that he would continue to skate in this helmet, both in training and in competitions. He noted that he did not consider the "memory helmet" a violation of the IOC rules.
Instead, IOC suggested that he wear a black headband instead of a helmet, but the athlete refused. Ultimately, the Ukrainian skeleton athlete was disqualified.
Ukrainian Sports Minister Matviy Bidnyi said Ukraine would appeal Heraskevychʼs disqualification "in the legal field". He supported the athlete, saying he "acted with dignity".
Vladyslav Heraskevych was also supported by President Volodymyr Zelensky and awarded him the Order of Freedom.
In addition to Heraskevych, two other Ukrainian athletes were banned from competing in their own helmets at this yearʼs Olympics. Freestyle skater Kateryna Kotsar was unable to compete in a helmet with the inscription "Be brave like Ukrainian", and short track speed skater Oleh Handei was unable to compete in a helmet with the quote from Ukrainian writer Lina Kostenko, "Where heroism takes place, there is no final defeat.”
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