02/10/26 04:51:00
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02/10 04:49 CST IOC allows Ukrainian athlete to wear black armband, but bans
helmet honoring fallen athletes
IOC allows Ukrainian athlete to wear black armband, but bans helmet honoring
fallen athletes
By TIM REYNOLDS
AP Sports Writer
CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) --- Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav
Heraskevych will be allowed to wear a black armband in competition at the Milan
Cortina Games, the International Olympic Committee said Tuesday, but not the
helmet he wanted to commemorate the lives of some athletes from his country who
were killed in the war with Russia.
The IOC called the move a compromise.
"I think what we've tried to do is to address his desires with compassion and
understanding," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said Tuesday. "He has expressed
himself on social media and in the training and, as you know, we will not stop
him expressing himself in press conferences, as he leaves competition in the
mixed zone and elsewhere. We feel that this is a good compromise in the
situation."
Heraskevych said the IOC told him Monday night that he could not wear the
helmet that shows the faces of several Ukrainian athletes who have been killed
since 2022, because Olympic officials decided it broke the rule banning
political statements.
Heraskevych --- who was fourth at last year's world championships and is
generally considered a medal hopeful at these games --- has more training runs
scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, and he is expected to compete in the
Olympic men's skeleton race Thursday.
It was not immediately clear if he would wear the armband. The IOC also pointed
out that it has banned armbands in the past, but is willing to make an
exception in Heraskevych's case. The move by the IOC doesn't mean all athletes
can wear armbands, and if Heraskevych chooses to do so, it can not include any
text, Adams said.
"We didn't violate any rules, and it should be allowed for me to compete with
this helmet," Heraskevych told The Associated Press on Monday, before Ukrainian
sliding officials met with a representative from the IOC and learned the helmet
would not be allowed. "I cannot understand how this helmet hurt anyone. It's to
pay tribute to athletes and some of them were medalists in the Youth Olympic
Games. That means they're Olympic family. They were part of this Olympic
family, so I cannot understand they would find a reason why not."
Figure skater Dmytro Sharpar, a onetime Youth Olympic Games teammate of
Heraskevych, is on the helmet, as are boxer Pavlo Ishchenko, hockey player
Oleksiy Loginov and others. Some, Heraskevych said, were killed on the front
lines; at least one died while trying to distribute aid to fellow Ukrainians.
Even Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy weighed in on Heraskevych's quest,
with a post on his Instagram page saying that he wanted to thank the slider for
"reminding the world the price of our struggle."
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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