Sybiha on disqualification of Olympian Heraskevych: IOC disqualified its own reputation

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, speaking about the disqualification of Ukrainian skeleton athlete and Olympian Vladyslav Heraskevych, said that the International Olympic Committee disqualified its own reputation by this decision. Sybiha announced this on X, the Ukrainian News agency reports.

"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," he said.

Sybiha noted that the IOC intimidated, disrespected and even lectured the Ukrainian athlete and other Ukrainians about how they should keep silent about "one of 130 conflicts in the world."

He emphasized that in doing so, the IOC has failed to confront the biggest violator of international sport and the Olympic Charter - russia, a country that has launched three invasions during the Olympic Truce in the last three decades, implemented the largest state-sponsored 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”," the Minister emphasized.

Sybiha noted that Ukraine is proud of the athlete for his principles and courage.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified before the first race at the 2026 Olympic Games.

The day before, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned Vladyslav Heraskevych from competing in the "memory helmet" created to honor Ukrainian athletes who were killed as a result of russia's armed aggression against Ukraine.