A Ukrainian athlete intends to compete at the Olympics wearing a helmet honoring fallen athletes, despite the IOC’s ban

Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych intends to compete at the 2026 Olympic Games only wearing his special helmet featuring images of fallen athletes.

This was reported by the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine (NOC).

“IOC representatives emphasize that it is impossible to use this helmet during official runs, while at the same time they propose honoring the memory of the fallen athletes by wearing a black ribbon,” the organization said in a statement.

The NOC said that Heraskevych did not agree to the proposed conditions and plans to start in his helmet. The NOC stressed that it fully supports the skeleton racer in his intention. Under the rules of the Olympic Charter, any demonstrations and political, religious, or racial propaganda are prohibited at the Olympic Games.

Ahead of the Olympics, Heraskevych said that the IOC had issued a warning to Ukrainian athletes regarding possible protests against Russian competitors.

The Olympics are taking place from February 6 to 22 in the Italian cities of Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. In total, 13 Russian athletes are competing in Italy under neutral status. They did not take part in the Opening Ceremony. So far none of them has won a medal; the best result was achieved by skier Saveliy Korostelev, who finished fourth in the skiathlon.

Earlier, the IOC barred another Ukrainian athlete from wearing a helmet with political slogans.