Skeleton racer disqualified from Olympics returns to Ukraine, plans fundraiser for fallen athletes

KYIV, Ukraine — After being disqualified from the Milan Cortina Olympics, Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych returned to Kyiv to find his capital suffering disruptions of power, heating and water. Still, he's glad to be back.

''Despite all that, home is the warmest place,'' Heraskevych told The Associated Press on Wednesday, standing in Kyiv's central square as temperatures hovered around minus 12 degrees Celsius (10 degrees Fahrenheit).

Heraskevych, a likely medal contender, was disqualified roughly 45 minutes before competition on Feb. 12 after refusing a last-minute plea from the International Olympic Committee to not use a helmet honoring more than 20 athletes and coaches killed since Russia invaded his country four years ago. The Court of Arbitration for Sport denied Heraskevych's appeal against the IOC and the International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation the next day, though his race had already started and he had no chance of competing even if he won the appeal.

The helmet and the fallout surrounding it produced heavy media coverage around the world, and Heraskevych's plan is to use his newfound spotlight to launch a fundraising effort for the families of the fallen Ukrainians painted on his helmet.

''It wasn't me who drew attention to Ukraine — it was them,'' he said. ''It is their voices that are heard very loudly.''

His conversation with the IOC president

Recalling his disqualification, he described a conversation with IOC President Kirsty Coventry, held about an hour before the race, as respectful but fruitless.

Coventry has repeatedly said his disqualification was justified and based on the guidelines for athlete expression at the Olympics. They say, in part, ''the focus on the field of play during competitions and official ceremonies must be on celebrating athletes' performances.'' Heraskevych never made it to the field of play — not in competition, anyway.

He also questioned what he described as inconsistent enforcement, citing the display of a Russian flag on the helmet of Italian snowboarder Roland Fischnaller without apparent sanction. The multiple flags on Fischnaller's helmet were a tribute to all the past Olympic sites he competed at, the 2014 Sochi Games included. Heraskevych also said he and other Ukrainian athletes saw Russian flags in the stands at Olympic venues, which were supposedly barred by the IOC.

Russian athletes haven't competed under their country's flag at a Winter Olympics since 2014, when Russia hosted a doping-tainted Games in Sochi. Some are instead competing as ''neutral athletes," under no flag. Ukraine's sports minister last week decried IOC actions his government says indicate the body may soon ease restrictions against Russian athletes.

''I told her that, from the outside, based on what I read in the media, it looks like you are playing along with Russia,'' Heraskevych said.

On Tuesday, the International Paralympic Committee said Russia's National Paralympic Committee had been awarded six slots for the upcoming Games that take place from March 6-15.

After her meeting with Heraskevych and his father, Coventry said they asked her what the IOC could do for Ukraine — specifically to address urgent needs its residents have, such as generators, because of the country's deeply troubled power grid.

She said she told Heraskevych that she would be ''more than happy to work with him and his dad to go out and to ask leaders, governments to try and help.''

''The IOC has, in the last few years, given over $10 million to Ukraine, to the NOC, to sports, to athletes. We want to continue to do that,'' she said.

The IOC has not said if it will contribute directly to Heraskevych's new initiative.

No regrets about his decision

Heraskevych would have likely been a legitimate medal contender in Cortina: He finished no worse than sixth place in any of his five official training runs in the buildup to the Olympic race, and had the fastest time in one of those runs — though that was also a run where some contenders, such as gold medalist Matt Weston of Britain, sat out to rest.

''It truly hurts, and we have really been working toward this for a very long time,'' he said.

Ultimately, Heraskevych does not regret his decision to compete wearing his helmet. He said the portraits it features represent only a fraction of the ''countless'' friends and acquaintances he lost during the war.

''Many people I knew left us far too early, at the age when they should have been starting families and building their lives,'' he said. ''Instead, we now have death in their place — and it hurts.''

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