CAS ad hoc Division denies Heraskevych's application
Once again, CAS acted in accordance with the wishes of the IOC. The press release on the arbitration ruling reads as if it were written by IOC's propaganda department – no deviations from IOC positions. Questions on the proceedings and the lack of transparency of IBSF and IOC remain unanswered.
I provide you with a quick summary and the text published a few minutes ago by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
The CAS Ad Hoc Division for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 denied the application filed by Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych against the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (IBSF) and the IOC. The athlete challenged the IBSF's decision to withdraw him from the men’s Skeleton event for intending to compete wearing a helmet displaying portraits of Ukrainian athletes who died in the war.
The Sole Arbitrator, Annett Rombach (Germany), dismissed the application, ruling that while freedom of speech is a fundamental right, the IOC's "Athlete Expression Guidelines" provide a reasonable and proportionate balance between an athlete's right to express views and the need to maintain focus on sporting performance on the "field of play". The arbitrator noted that the athlete had other opportunities to raise awareness, such as in mixed zones or on social media, but was bound by the rules prohibiting such expression during competition. However, the arbitrator added that withdrawing the athlete's accreditation was unfair under the circumstances and supported the IOC's decision to return it.
The case proceeded under the extremely tight schedule. Heraskevych filed his application on the afternoon of February 12, 2026, challenging the IBSF Jury's decision to remove him from the starting list for the men's Skeleton event scheduled for the same day. A request for provisional measures to allow him to compete pending the final outcome was denied shortly after midnight on February 13. The substantive hearing was held in Milan later that morning from 09:00 to 11:55, with the athlete attending in person alongside his father.
In her ruling, the Sole Arbitrator made a point to express that she was "fully sympathetic" to Heraskevych’s desire to commemorate the victims of the war and raise awareness for the grief suffered by the Ukrainian people. However, she ruled that she was bound by the "proportionate" rules of the IOC Athlete Expression Guidelines, which limit political expression on the field of play to ensure undivided attention on sporting performance. While the arbitrator upheld the ban on the helmet, she notably addressed the broader consequences of the dispute, stating it was "unfair to withdraw Mr Heraskevych’s accreditation in these circumstances" and explicitly supported the IOC’s decision to return the accreditation to the athlete.
