Vladyslav Heraskevych

In this name that follows East Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Mykhailovych and the family name is Heraskevych.
Vladyslav Heraskevych
Heraskevych in 2021
Personal information
Born (1999-01-12) 12 January 1999
Kyiv, Ukraine
Height1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Sport
Country Ukraine
SportSkeleton

Vladyslav Mykhailovych Heraskevych (Ukrainian: Владислав Михайлович Гераскевич; born 12 January 1999) is a Ukrainian skeleton racer who has competed since 2014. He is the first Ukrainian skeleton racer to qualify for the Winter Olympics.

Career

His father, Mykhailo Heraskevych, trains Heraskevych. He began competing in 2014. Previously, he tried boxing.

In February 2016, he participated at 2016 Winter Youth Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, where he finished 8th.[1] A month earlier, he was 17th at the Junior World Championships in Winterberg, Germany. The following year, he achieved 10th place at the Junior Worlds in Sigulda, Latvia.

On 24 February 2017, he became the first-ever Ukrainian athlete to compete in skeleton at World Championships.[2] He finished 24th at 2017 World Championships in Königssee, Germany.

On 10 November 2017, he debuted in Skeleton World Cup and was 27th in Lake Placid, United States. That season he participated in 7 of 8 races and ranked 24th in World Cup classification.

On 15 January 2018, it was announced that Ukraine received one quota spot for the men's skeleton competition which was the first ever for Ukraine in this sport.[3] At the Olympics, he finished 12th (placing 7th in the final run) in what was regarded in Ukraine as an enormous success.[4][5] After such a success, Ukrainian Public TV company UA:First started to broadcast Skeleton World Cup for the first time in the history of Ukrainian television.[6]

In the next World Cup season, Heraskevych started very well by finishing 9th in Sigulda, Latvia. But, he wasn't successful at the European Championships, where he failed to qualify for the second run. At the 2019 World Championships, he finished 14th.

Before the Olympic 2021–22 season, Heraskevych showed relatively stable results, reaching twice Top-10 and qualifying for all second runs in the races he took part in. On 31 December 2022, Heraskevych achieved his new World Cup best finish by ranking 6th in Latvian Sigulda.

In 2022, Heraskevych was nominated for his second Winter Games in Beijing.[7] At the Games, he displayed a sign stating "No War in Ukraine" (in reference to the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis), a possible violation of Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter that bans all political displays and demonstrations.[8] The International Olympic Committee (IOC) stated that Heraskevych would not face repercussions for the sign, calling it a "general call for peace".[9] In the competition, he finished in the 18th position.

Four days after the end of the Olympic Games, the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine started. Heraskevych helped deliver food and supplies to the Ukrainian people.[10]

Heraskevych was one of Ukraine's flag bearers for the 2026 Winter Olympics' Parade of Nations.[11]

2026 Olympic helmet disqualification

While training for the 2026 Games, Heraskevych wore a "helmet of memory" with 24 images of Ukrainian athletes killed in the Russian invasion.[12][13][14] Those depicted included members of the military who were killed in action, such as shooter Oleksiy Habarov and hockey player Oleksiy Loginov, as well as civilians who died in air strikes like weightlifter Alina Perehudova and dancer Daria Kurdel.[13] Dmytro Sharpar, a figure skater and teammate of Heraskevych at the 2016 Winter Youth Olympics, is also shown.[15] The helmet was designed by Ukrainian artist Iryna Prots.[16]

The IOC forbade him from using the helmet in competition, citing Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter, and offered to let him wear a black armband instead. IOC spokesman Mark Adams explained the committee wished to "concentrate on the athletes' performance and sport on the field of play" while separating the Games from "all types of interference".[15] Heraskevych disputed the decision because he did not have time to find a suitable replacement and felt a tribute helmet was not political.[12] He continued to use the helmet in training despite the committee's requests to change it.[14] The National Olympic Committee of Ukraine also submitted a letter of appeal to the IOC.[15]

As the impasse continued, Heraskevych proclaimed he would accept a disqualification rather than wear a black armband because a "medal is worthless in comparison to people's lives and, I believe, in comparison to the memory of these athletes."[17] With no resolution by the day of the competition on 12 February, a jury of the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation ruled to disqualify him from the Games.[18]

Following his disqualification, Heraskevych said that "other athletes in the same situation were able to compete, and they didn't face any sanctions".[18] American figure skater Maxim Naumov had held up a photograph of his parents, who were killed in the 2025 Potomac River mid-air collision, after finishing a performance earlier that week.[18][20] Adams had previously drawn this comparison, but made the distinction that Naumov's gesture had been after his performance, not during it, saying: "for [the IOC], and for the athletes more importantly, the field of play is sacrosanct."[17]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticised the IOC's ruling as a betrayal of athletes who were part of the Olympic Movement, and stated the "truth cannot be awkward, inappropriate or called political action."[14][20] Zelenskyy later awarded the Order of Liberty to Heraskevych.[21] "Remembrance is not a violation" became a slogan of solidarity with Heraskevych, which luger Olena Smaha wrote on her glove ahead of her event while Ukrainian troops posted pictures of them holding signs bearing the phrase.[22][23] Skiers Dmytro Shepiuk and Kateryna Kotsar raised their gloves to show the phrase "UKR heroes with us" and "Freedom of memory" after their respective events; Kotsar had also been ordered to remove a pro-Ukrainian phrase from her helmet.[22][24] The Ukrainian luge team kneeled and raised their helmets following the team relay.[25]

Heraskevych appealed the verdict to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS),[26] which dismissed the case.[27] In a statement, CAS said the arbitrator considered the limits imposed by the IOC's Athlete Expression Guidelines on athletes' freedom of expression on the field of play "reasonable and proportionate, considering the other opportunities for athletes to raise awareness", and could not override them.[28] Heraskevych's lawyer expressed disappointment at the ruling, saying CAS "upheld the decision that an athlete could be disqualified from the Olympic Games without actual misconduct, without a technical or safety threat, and before the start".[27]

Personal life

Heraskevych graduated from the faculty of physics at the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.[29]

Awards and decorations

Career results

Winter Olympics

Year Event Rank
2018 Pyeongchang, South Korea 12
2022 Beijing, China 18
2026 Cortina, Italy DSQ

World Championships

Year Event Rank
2017 Königssee, Germany 24
2019 Whistler, Canada 14
2020 Altenberg, Germany 14
2021 Altenberg, Germany 13

European Championships

Year Event Rank
2018 Innsbruck, Austria 15
2019 Innsbruck, Austria 15
2020 Sigulda, Latvia 11
2021 Winterberg, Germany 11
2022 St. Moritz, Switzerland 10

Skeleton World Cup

Rankings

Season Rank Points
2017–18 24 404
2018–19 9 944
2019–20 13 896
2020–21 13 880
2021–22 16 816

Results

Season Place Points 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
2017–18 24th 404 LPL
27 		PAC
13 		WHI
18 		WIN
31 		IGL
27 		ALT
— 		STM
26 		KON
15
2018–19 9th 944 SIG
9 		WIN
17 		ALT
14 		IGL
22 		STM
12 		LPL
12 		CAL
12 		CAL
9
2019–20 13th 896 LPL
12 		LPL
18 		WIN
16 		LAP
8 		INS
17 		KON
11 		STM
16 		SIG
14
2020–21 13th 896 SIG
12 		SIG
9 		INS
14 		INS
11 		WIN
11 		STM
11 		KON
— 		INS
18
2021–22 16th 816 INS
22 		INS
21 		ALT
10 		WIN
19 		ALT
12 		SIG
6 		WIN
25 		STM
11

See also

References

  1. ^ "Владислав Гераскевич - в еліті світового скелетону". National Olympic Committee of Ukraine. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  2. ^ "Український скелетоніст вперше виступив на чемпіонаті світу". korrespondent.net. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  3. ^ "Гераскевич став першим скелетоністом, який представить Україну на Олімпіаді". Ukrinform. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  4. ^ Debut in skeleton: Heraskevych is 12th
  5. ^ Report from news about Heraskevych's success at the Olympics (Youtube video in Ukrainian)
  6. ^ UA:First's statement regarding Skeleton World Cup broadcast
  7. ^ "Official list of Ukrainian delegation at the 2022 Winter Games was published". Suspilne. 21 January 2022. Retrieved 28 January 2022.
  8. ^ "Ukrainian athlete risks Winter Olympics rebuke after anti-war protest". The Guardian. 11 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  9. ^ Porterfield, Carlie (11 February 2022). "IOC Will Not Punish Ukrainian Olympian Over 'No War In Ukraine' Sign". Forbes. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  10. ^ "Ukrainian bobsledder helps deliver food, supplies", CBS News, 26 March 2022
  11. ^ "Milan-Cortina 2026: Ukraine has chosen both flag bearers for the Olympic opening ceremony". Ukrainian National News. 2 February 2026. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
  12. ^ a b Grohmann, Karolos; Pretot, Julien (11 February 2026). "IOC 'begs' Ukraine's Heraskevych to race without war dead helmet but athlete is defiant". Reuters. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  13. ^ a b "Ukrainian Skeleton Racer Uses Olympic Helmet to Spotlight Athletes Killed By Russia". Kyiv Post. 9 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  14. ^ a b c Ingle, Sean (10 February 2026). "Ukraine racer defies IOC ban by wearing 'helmet of memory' as anger grows". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  15. ^ a b c Talmazan, Yuliya (10 February 2026). "Ukrainian Olympics star banned from wearing helmet tribute to war dead". NBC News. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  16. ^ Novikov, Illia (12 February 2026). "Artist behind banned Ukrainian Olympic helmet calls Heraskevych's tribute 'great heroism'". AP News. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  17. ^ a b Ingle, Sean (11 February 2026). "Ukrainian skeleton athlete ready to be disqualified over 'helmet of memory'". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  18. ^ a b c Anderson, Jess (12 February 2026). "IOC bans Ukrainian skeleton racer over helmet". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
  19. ^ "Аркуш з 9 марок «Коли ти з Україною — ти перемагаєш!»" (in Ukrainian). 12 February 2026.
  20. ^ a b Reynolds, Tim (9 February 2026). "Ukrainian skeleton racer at Olympics says his helmet tribute to fallen athletes won't be allowed". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. AP. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  21. ^ a b "Zelensky awards Ukrainian athlete disqualified over 'memorial helmet' at Olympics". The Kyiv Independent. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  22. ^ a b Reynolds, Tim (11 February 2026). "Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych trains again in banned helmet, despite IOC ruling". Associated Press. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  23. ^ "Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers launched the "Memory is not a violation" flashmob in support of Ukrainian Olympians". Ukrainian National News. 11 February 2026. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
  24. ^ Ingle, Sean (15 February 2026). "Love is in the big air for Ukrainian skier after reaching Winter Olympics final". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  25. ^ "Ukraine luge team kneels in protest after teammate disqualified for helmet". WNBC. AP. 12 February 2026. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
  26. ^ Pierce, Zack (12 February 2026). "Ukrainian sledder Vladyslav Heraskevych files appeal over DQ for skeleton helmet". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
  27. ^ a b Ingle, Sean (13 February 2026). "Ukrainian athlete's appeal for Winter Olympics reinstatement dismissed by Cas". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  28. ^ "The CAS Ad Hoc Division Denies Application by Vladyslav Heraskevych (Ukraine) and Finds Freedom of Expression Guaranteed at the Olympic Games, but Not on the Field of Play" (PDF) (Press release). Court of Arbitration for Sport. 13 February 2026. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 February 2026. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
  29. ^ "Гераскевич в базі даних abit-poisk.org.ua". abit-poisk.org.ua. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
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