Ukrainian star disqualified from Winter Olympics

over helmet honoring war dead.

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Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified after refusing to remove a “Memory Helmet” honoring Ukrainian athletes and coaches killed in the war.

The IOC said the helmet violated Rule 50, which bans political statements at Olympic events, and told him he could only compete if he switched to a plain helmet or wore a black armband instead.

Heraskevych said the helmet wasn’t political and that he wouldn’t “betray” the people he was honoring. Ukraine’s government and President Zelenskyy criticized the IOC’s decision, calling it a shameful moment. Heraskevych plans to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

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Translated from Ukrainian
I propose to end this scandal.

I never wanted a scandal with the IOC, and I did not create it. The IOC created it with its interpretation of the rules, which many view as discriminatory.
Although the IOC's actions have made it possible to loudly speak about Ukrainian athletes who have been killed, at the same time the very fact of the scandal distracts a tremendous amount of attention away from the competitions themselves and from the athletes participating in them. Therefore, I once again propose to end the scandal.
I request:
1. Lift the ban on the use of the “Memory Helmet”.
2. Apologize for the pressure that has been put on me over the past few days.
3. As a sign of solidarity with Ukrainian sport, provide electric generators for Ukrainian sports facilities that are suffering from daily shellings.

I very much hope for a response before the start of the skeleton competitions.

Let the man skeleton.