12/02/2026
OFFICIAL PROTEST STATEMENT
Concerning the IBSF Jury Decision – Men’s Skeleton, Milano-Cortina 2026
We formally protest the decision of the IBSF Jury to withdraw Ukrainian athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych from the starting list of the Men’s Skeleton event on 12 February 2026.
This decision, issued under the interpretation of the Olympic Charter and the Guidelines on Athlete Expression, constitutes a disproportionate and unjust restriction on fundamental human expression, remembrance, and dignity.
The helmet design in question did not contain political slogans, propaganda, or calls to action. It displayed portraits honoring Ukrainian athletes who lost their lives as victims of war. This was a memorial act — humanitarian and commemorative in nature — not political campaigning.
We stress the following:
1. Memorial vs. Political Expression
Honoring deceased athletes is an act of remembrance, not political advocacy. The interpretation that mourning victims of war constitutes political messaging sets a dangerous precedent that suppresses basic human empathy.
2. Disproportionate Sanction
Immediate withdrawal from competition is the most severe sporting sanction short of disqualification for cheating or safety violations. Applying such a penalty to commemorative imagery is excessive and punitive.
3. Inconsistency in Expression Enforcement
Olympic history contains numerous examples of symbolic gestures, memorial tributes, and humanitarian messages that were permitted where no explicit political demand was made.
Signed,
Latvia skeleton team
