‘I will not betray them’: Ukrainian athlete defies Olympic ban on tribute helmet

Livigno: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has defended skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych after he was banned from wearing a tribute helmet at the 2026 Olympics picturing Ukrainian athletes who have been killed in the war.

The International Olympic Committee instead offered Heraskevych the option to wear a black armband in competition as the four-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – February 24 – nears.

But in a press conference on Tuesday, Heraskevych said he will defy the IOC ban and compete in his “helmet of remembrance” honouring those killed in the war with Russia. The 27-year-old has been training in Italy with the helmet showing 24 images of dead Ukrainian athletes, some of whom were his friends. They include teenage weightlifter Alina Perehudova, boxer Pavlo Ischenko, ice hockey player Oleksiy Loginov, actor and athlete Ivan Kononenko, diver and coach Mykyta Kozubenko, shooter Oleksiy Habarov and dancer Daria Kurdel.

“Because of their [the dead athletes’] sacrifice, we are able to compete here as a team. I will not betray them,” Heraskevych said at an outdoor press conference by the Olympic rings in Cortina.

“I believe they deserve to be with me on competition day. I used it yesterday [at training], I used it today [at training], I will use it tomorrow and I will use it on race day.

“Now I need to think about how I can perform better and how I can be concentrated on the track, but now I’m here, I’m trying to fight for my right to wear this helmet.”

Heraskevych, who displayed a “No War in Ukraine” sign at Beijing 2022 days before Russia’s invasion, said he had received encouragement from numerous athletes.

Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter states that no kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas.

However, Zelensky said the truth was not a political demonstration.

“His helmet bears portraits of our athletes who were killed by Russia,” Zelensky said.

“Figure skater Dmytro Sharpar, who was killed in combat near Bakhmut; Yevhen Malyshev, a 19-year-old biathlete killed by the occupiers near Kharkiv; and other Ukrainian athletes whose lives were taken by Russia’s war.”

Heraskevych carried the flag for Ukraine at the opening ceremony in Cortina on February 6.

“I thank the flag bearer of our national team at the Winter Olympics, Vladyslav Heraskevych, for reminding the world of the price of our struggle,” Zelensky said.

“This truth cannot be inconvenient, inappropriate, or called a ‘political demonstration at a sporting event.’ It is a reminder to the entire world of what modern Russia is.

“And this is what reminds everyone of the global role of sport and the historic mission of the Olympic movement itself – it is all about peace and for the sake of life. Ukraine remains faithful to this. Russia proves the opposite.”

IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said the IOC had received a formal request for Heraskevych to wear the helmet, but had informed his coach he could not wear it in competition.

“The Games need to be separated from not just political and religious topics, but all types of interference so that all athletes can concentrate on performance,” Adams said.

“What we have said is this helmet contravenes the above-mentioned guidelines. But that being said, after the meeting [with Heraskevych coach], in which we reiterated those guidelines again, we decided to make an exception to allow him to wear a black armband during competition.

“What we have tried to do is address his desires with compassion and understanding.”

Heraskevych initially took to social media to express his disappointment with the decision.

“At the Olympics, we have already seen a large number of Russian flags in the stands, on the helmet of one of the athletes - and for our IOC, this is not a violation,” Heraskevych said.

“Yet a violation was found in the ‘helmet of memory’, which pays tribute to members of the Ukrainian sports family who have been killed since the last Olympic Games were held.

“The truth is on our side. ”

Ukraine Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko also offered support.

“More than 650 Ukrainian athletes will never stand on an Olympic stage. They were killed by Russians,” Svyrydenko said in a post on X. “Against this reality, the decision to ban the helmet of our athlete ... which commemorates some of our fallen is profoundly wrong. Remembering the dead is not politics. It is dignity.”

“The IOC should honour those who can no longer compete, not silence their memory,” she said.

With Reuters

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