President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy awarded Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Geraskevych with the Order of Freedom.
Points of attention
- Vladyslav Geraskevych, the Ukrainian skeleton athlete, has been honored with the Order of Freedom by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
- Geraskevych faced disqualification from the 2026 Olympic Games for violating the rules, which stirred global outrage and condemnation.
Zelenskyy awarded Geraskevych the Order of Freedom
The relevant decree of the Head of State No. 119/2026 was published on the website of the President of Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.
For selfless service to the Ukrainian people, civic courage and patriotism in upholding the ideals of freedom and democratic values, I decree: To award the Order of Freedom to Vladyslav Mykhailovych Geraskevych, a member of the national Olympic team of Ukraine, a skeleton athlete.
As reported, on February 12, Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Geraskevych was disqualified before the first race at the 2026 Olympic Games.
Geraskevych planned to start the first race in the "Memory Helmet", but the start took place without his participation. The day before, the IOC banned Geraskevych from competing in the "Memory Helmet" at the Olympic Games. For this, the Ukrainian was threatened with disqualification.
The IOC explained Geraskevych's disqualification as "non-compliance with the rules."
The world condemns the disqualification of Ukrainian Geraskevych from the 2026 Olympics.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that "having courage is more than medals," and also emphasized that the IOC's decision to disqualify Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Geraskevych does not demonstrate adherence to the principles of Olympism, which are based on justice and the maintenance of peace.
