President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Ukrainian skeleton racer, member of the national Olympic team of Ukraine Vladyslav Heraskevych and his father, coach of the Ukrainian skeleton team Mykhailo Heraskevych. The head of state announced this on Telegram and published a video of the meeting, UNN reports.
Details
Zelenskyy presented Heraskevych with the Order of Liberty.
Ukraine will have champions and Olympians. But the main thing Ukraine has is Ukrainians. Those for whom truth and memory are important about the athletes who were killed by Russia and who will never be able to participate in sports competitions again due to Russian aggression.
He thanked Heraskevych for his "stance, strength, and courage."
Context
The IOC disqualified Ukrainian Vladyslav Heraskevych before the first heat of the 2026 Olympics in skeleton because he was supposed to start in a "helmet of memory" - as a sign of respect for fallen Ukrainian athletes and all our Heroes.
Heraskevych himself stated that he would appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
The legal process of Vladyslav Heraskevych against the IOC and IBSF under an expedited procedure concluded on February 13. The court rejected the Ukrainian skeleton racer's claim.