"Even though the IOC betrayed them, I will not betray them": skeleton racer Heraskevych will continue to fight for justice in court
Kyiv • UNN
Heraskevych will appeal to the court to restore justice after the decision of the International Olympic Committee regarding his disqualification for the "helmet of memory", which he was never able to use in the race at the 2026 Olympics
Famous Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych, who became the first skeleton racer in the history of independent Ukraine to win an Olympic license and compete in the Olympic Games, announced that he would appeal to court to restore justice after the decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to disqualify him for the "memory helmet" that he was unable to use in the race at the 2026 Olympics. This is reported by UNN with reference to Media Center Ukraine.
Although the IOC betrayed them, I will not betray them. We will continue our fight. I am convinced that these athletes have the right to be in these competitions.
Recall
Heraskevych's case has already been considered by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which rejected his claim against the IOC. Now, within the next 30 days, Ukraine has the right to a legal response. According to sports lawyer and former acting president of the Ukrainian Athletics Federation Yevhen Pronin, if necessary, the defense of the Ukrainian athlete can be appealed to the Federal Court of Switzerland.
We have a team of European lawyers who are ready to help. To represent interests in Swiss jurisdiction, we need specialists with appropriate qualifications.
At the same time, Heraskevych's team was not informed about the intentions of other Ukrainian lawyers to join the athlete's defense. This refers, in particular, to the fact that information was spread on social networks that Andriy Yermak wanted to join the case.
Regarding the court cases, I only learned about it from social networks. For all documents, we worked with Mr. Yevhen and foreign lawyers. Not everything written on the Internet is true.
Pronin added that outside help at critical moments of the appeal process was only distracting, and he independently conducted all communications:
My competence in sports arbitration is sufficient, I have been doing this for more than 12 years. Any outside help, if needed, I will ask for it.