Ukrainian Skeleton Racer Will Wear Helmet Showing People Killed in War, in Defiance of Olympic Committee

"We have members of Olympic family, part of Olympic movement, and they don't even want to honor them," Vladyslav Heraskevych said of the International Olympic Committee

NEED TO KNOW

• Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych is determined to wear his helmet honoring people killed in Russia’s invasion of his country
• Heraskevych said he will don the helmet for Olympic competition, against the International Olympic Committee’s ruling
• “The IOC decision on that regard is, I would say, a little bit [of a] circus,” he said

Vladyslav Heraskevych is determined to honor his late compatriots, regardless of what the International Olympic Committee says.

The Ukrainian skeleton racer, 27, has worn a helmet covered in images of people killed in the war in his home country throughout his training sessions at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Soon after he debuted the headpiece, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) contacted Ukraine's Olympic Committee about the helmet, saying the Games' rulebook prohibits political demonstrations.

The IOC ruled Monday that Heraskevych cannot wear the helmet while he competes.

"[We] have to concentrate on athletes' performance and sport on the field of play," IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said during a press briefing in Milan. "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."

Heraskevych responded Tuesday, Feb. 10, saying he will still wear the helmet, in defiance of the IOC.

"We will continue to fight for the right to compete in this helmet. I truly believe that we didn't violate any law and any rule," Heraskevych said on Tuesday, according to NPR. "The IOC decision on that regard is, I would say, a little bit [of a] circus."

The IOC told Heraskevych that he could instead wear a black armband, which the athlete rejected as a compromise.

"No, I will wear [the] helmet," he said, per NPR.

Heraskevych finished his fifth training session out of six on Wednesday, and moves on to two competition days on Thursday and Friday, where fans will see if he wears the helmet.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy supported the three-time Olympian for his decision on social media on Monday.

"His helmet bears portraits of our athletes who were killed by Russia. 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," Zelenskyy said.

Heraskevych said he wants the IOC to recognize that several of the people depicted on his helmet are former Olympians. "We have members of Olympic family, part of Olympic movement, and they don't even want to honor them," he said.

Russia is currently banned from participating in the Olympics due to their ongoing war against Ukraine. Russian athletes wanting to compete can, but under the flag of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), rather than Russia's flag. They also cannot have openly supported Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Just 13 Russian athletes were approved by the IOC for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, come to people.com to check out ongoing coverage before, during and after the games. Watch the Milan Cortina Olympics and Paralympics, beginning Feb. 6, on NBC and Peacock.