Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha commented on the disqualification of Vladyslav Heraskevych ahead of his first run at the Skeleton event at the 2026 Winter Olympics:

“The IOC has banned not the Ukrainian athlete, but its own reputation. Future generations will recall this as a moment of shame.

He simply wanted to commemorate fellow athletes killed in war. There is nothing wrong with that under any rules or ethics.

The IOC intimidated, disrespected, and even lectured our athlete and other Ukrainians on how they should keep quiet about “one of 130 conflicts in the world”.

The IOC has also systemically failed to confront the greatest abuser of international sports and the Olympic Charter – Russia. 

A country that started three invasions during the Olympic Truce in the past three decades, implemented the largest state-funded doping program, killed 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches, and damaged 800 sports facilities in Ukraine.

These are Russians who must be banned, not the commemoration of their victims. None of them are “neutral”.

If the Olympic Creed says that “the most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part”, then IOC betrayed it completely by preventing Vladyslav Heraskevych from taking part and betrayed 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches killed by Russia.

We are proud to have Vladyslav who has not betrayed them. Thank you for your principles and bravery.”