One of the biggest stories to come to the forefront during the opening week of the 2026 Winter Olympics surrounded Ukrainian skeleton pilot Vladyslav Heraskevych, who was banned from competing because of his custom helmet.
Heraskevych wore a helmet during qualifying, which featured the faces of athletes who were killed in the country’s war with Russia.
Despite warnings from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) about the helmet, Heraskevych stood firm and vowed to wear the helmet when the official competition began. He was barred from competing for violating the IOC’s stance on political statements during the Winter Games.
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Heraskevych received plenty of support from his fellow athletes and was ultimately honored by Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, receiving the country’s Order of Freedom.
Since the news went viral, more information has surfaced about the details of Heraskevych’s helmet, including the list of the athletes who were honored.
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Fallen athletes honored on Vladyslav Heraskevych’s Olympic helmet
Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych’s memory helmet shows the faces of Ukrainian athletes and coaches killed by Russia’s war. The International Olympic Committee has disqualified him for wearing it – undermining its own reputation. This decision is a shameful betrayal… pic.twitter.com/eVZChMQMuG
— MFA of Ukraine(@MFA_Ukraine) February 12, 2026
The full list of names includes:
- Alina Perehudova – 14 years old
- Karina Dyachenko – 11 years old
- Viktoriia Ivashko – 9 years old
- Maria Lebid – 15 years old
- Nazar Zuy – 13 years old
- Volodymyr Androshchuk – 22 years old
- Oleksii Khabarov – 31 years old
- Yevhen Malyshev – 19 years old
- Dmytro Sharpar – 25 years old
- Pavlo Ishchenko – 33 years old
- Maksym Halinichev – 22 years old
- Andrii Kutsenko – 34 years old
- Oleksii Lohinov – 23 years old
- Karina Bakhur – 17 years old
- Mykyta Kozubenko – 31 years old
- Roman Polishchuk – 29 years old
- Andrii Yaremenko – 25 years old
- Taras Shpuk – 34 years old
- Kateryna Troyan – 32 years old
- Fedir Epifanov – 19 years old
- Daria Kurdel – 20 years old
- Ivan Kononenko – 42 years old
It was a noble gesture from Heraskevych, who made sure that his message was heard on the world stage.
After his disqualification, Heraskevych said, “I sincerely believe that it is precisely because of their sacrifice that these Olympic Games can take place at all today. Even though the IOC wants to betray the memory of these athletes, I will not betray them.”
May all of the fallen athletes rest in peace.
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