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Ukrainian skeletonist Vladyslav Heraskevych accused the International Olympic Committee (IOC) of “treason” after it was banned from wearing a helmet with images of athletes and friends killed during the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine appealed the ban on the grounds that Heraskevych should be allowed to wear a commemorative helmet depicting weightlifter Alina Peregudova, boxer Pavlo Ishchenko and hockey player Oleksii Loginov.
The IOC rejected the appeal, citing a violation of its rules on political expression.
Rule 50.2 of the Olympic Charter states: “No demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda of any kind is permitted in any Olympic venue, arena or other areas.”
IOC spokesman Mark Adams said the governing body would allow Heraskevych to wear the black armband during the competition.
“An informal meeting was held last night with Mr. Heraskevych, his coach and delegation, and we reiterated our understanding of the athlete’s desire to honor his fellow Ukrainian athletes, which he did during training and on social media,” Adams said. during the press conference.
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“After the meeting we also reiterated that we would make an exception to the guidelines to allow him to wear a black armband during the competition for that commemoration.”
This is not the first time that Heraskevych has made a statement on the most prestigious stage in the world of sports.
While competing at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, he held a sign reading “No war in Ukraine.”
In a post on Instagram on Tuesday, after the helmet ban, he shared a photo of the moment, writing: “Unfortunately, over the years this call for peace has only become more relevant.”
“Also during these 4 years the IOC changed dramatically. Then they saw in that action a call for peace and did not apply any sanctions against me.”
“Now, at the Olympic Games, we have already seen a large number of Russian flags on the stands, on the helmet of one of the athletes – and for the IOC, this is not a violation.”
He said the helmet “pays tribute to the members of the Ukrainian sports family who have been killed since the last Olympics.”
“The truth is on our side. I hope for a fair final decision by the IOC,” he concluded.
ua separate videohe criticized the IOC for inconsistently enforcing its rules against the Ukrainians and for “betraying” the athletes featured on his helmet by not allowing them to be honored.
He referred to other incidents throughout Olympic history when athletes were allowed to honor the deaths of loved ones without penalty, including German weightlifter Matthias Steiner, who held a photo of his late wife, who had died in a car accident more than a year earlier, on the podium after winning gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
“Despite precedents in modern times and in the past when the IOC allowed such honors, this time they decided to set special rules only for Ukraine,” Heraskevych wrote.
— With files from Global News’ Adriana Fallico
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
