MILAN, February 13. /TASS/. President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Kirsty Coventry told journalists she viewed the disqualification of Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladislav Geraskevich as fair, since he did not want to follow regulations.

"It’s literally about the rules and the regulations <…> We have these rules in place to try and be fair, and also to try and enable us to do both things: to allow athletes to express themselves, but also to ensure athletes are safe," she said.

The IOC announced in a statement on February 12 that Geraskevich had been barred from participating in the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Italy for wearing a prohibited helmet, also revoking his Olympic accreditation.

However, later that day the IOC Disciplinary Commission partially amended its verdict regarding the competition ban and Olympic accreditation revocation of Geraskevich, allowing him to stay at the 2026 Winter Games, while still barring him from competing.

Earlier in the week, the IOC prohibited Geraskevich from wearing the controversial helmet. His helmet featured images of fallen Ukrainian athletes which, the IOC claimed, contravened the Olympic Charter. The athlete, nevertheless, wore it again for the final test runs before the start of the competitions.

After that, the IOC representatives held a second meeting with the skeleton racer, and he declared that he intended to race wearing this helmet. He also had a meeting with Coventry discussing the same issue on Thursday morning.

Following his meeting with Coventry, Gerskevich demanded that the IOC should come up with apologies and the IOC must also finance the installation of power generating units at sports facilities across Ukraine.

Geraskevich, 27, has never medaled in international competition. The Ukrainian athlete finished fourth at the 2025 IBSF World Championships; on two occasions he also finished in 4th place at the IBSF World Cup stages, and his best result at the Bobsleigh and Skeleton European Championships was 8th place, which he accomplished earlier this year.

The Ukrainian participated in the last two Olympics before this year's Games, finishing 12th at the 2018 Winter Games and 19th at the 2022 Winter Games. Geraskevich was the Ukrainian national team’s flagbearer at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.

The 2026 Winter Olympic Games are taking place in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, from February 6-22, 2026.