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Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych speaks at a press conference at the Ukrainian Consulate in Milan, on the sidelines of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games. Heraskevych was disqualified from the competition because he insisted on wearing a helmet with photos of Ukrainian athletes who were killed in Russia's war of aggression. Peter Kneffel/dpa
Vladyslav Heraskevych's charity fund has received a large sum of money after the Ukrainian athlete was banned from the skeleton competition at the Milan/Cortina Winter Olympic over a helmet controversy.
"This money is equivalent to the Olympic bonus that he and his team would have received in the event of a victory," Ukrainian billionaire and businessman Rinat Akhmetov said on Tuesday in a statement from his foundation.
According to the statement, the equivalent of just under €200,000 ($237,000) was given to Heraskevych's charity fund.
The Interfax news agency said that five other companies have also made donations, totalling the equivalent of around €60,000.
The money is intended to help Heraskewytsch continue his sporting career and his commitment to Ukraine.
Heraskevych was disqualified shortly before the start of the skeleton events in Italy after insisting on racing in a helmet that had been banned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The helmet featured images of more than 20 athletes who have died in Russia's war in Ukraine.
In an expedited procedure, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld the ban.
According to the guidelines of the Olympic Charter, athletes are prohibited from making political statements during actual competition. Heraskevych argued that the gesture was a commemoration rather than a political statement, something he says other athletes had been allowed to do.
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