Skeleton, Men

Controversy abounded in this event even before it started because of the presence of Ukrainian slider Vlad Heraskevych. Heraskevych did his training runs in a helmet that displayed the faces of several Ukrainian athletes who had been killed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But then the IOC announced that he would not be able to compete in that helmet, considering it not being in line with the Athlete Expression Guidelines, in which the IOC does not allow personalised expressions in the competitive field.

Heraskevych insisted he wanted to wear the helmet, and despite a meeting with IOC President Kirsty Coventry, the IOC would not relent. They offered him several options, including wearing the helmet in the mixed zone for interviews, and also allowing him to slide wearing a black armband, but Heraskevych was insistent he be allowed to wear the helmet in competition.

The IOC then disqualified Heraskevych and withdrew his Milano-Cortina accreditation, although it relented somewhat and restored his accreditation. After the first 2 runs of the men’s skeleton, Heraskevych appealed this disqualification to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), although it was unclear how he could make up the runs.

CAS had an urgent decision made by a single arbitrator but she sided with the IOC and denied his appeal, stating in a media release, “The Sole Arbitrator, whilst fully sympathetic to Mr Heraskevych’s commemoration, is bound by rules in the IOC Athlete Expression Guidelines. The Sole Arbitrator considers these Guidelines provide a reasonable balance between athletes’ interests to express their views, and athletes’ interests to receive undivided attention for their sporting performance on the field of play.

“The Sole Arbitrator appointed for this matter wished to state that she is fully sympathetic to Mr Heraskevych’s commemoration and to his attempt to raise awareness for the grief and devastation suffered by the Ukrainian people, and Ukrainian athletes because of the war. She heard the arguments and examined the Athlete Expression Guidelines, which state that freedom of speech is a fundamental right of any athlete competing in the Olympic Games, but limit the right to express views during competitions on the field of play. The Sole Arbitrator found these limitations reasonable and proportionate, considering the other opportunities for athletes to raise awareness (in mixed zones, in press conferences, on social networks, or in Mr Heraskevych’s case, wearing the helmet during four training runs). The Sole Arbitrator notes that the goal of this is to maintain the focus of the Olympic Games on performances and sport, a common interest of all athletes, who have worked for years to appear in the Olympic Games, and who deserve undivided attention for their sporting performances and sporting success.

“The Sole Arbitrator is bound by such proportionate rules and has no means to override them. As a consequence, the application was dismissed. The Sole Arbitrator adds that it was unfair to withdraw Mr Heraskevych’s accreditation in these circumstances and supports the decision of the IOC to return it.”

Heraskevych was unable to start in the event. In the Official Results he is listed as disqualified but he was actually a non-starter.

In the midst of the controversy the event went on. Britain’s Matt Weston was the favorite, having won the World Championships in 2023 and 2025 and the season World Cup in the last three seasons. He took the lead on the first run and then had the fastest time on every run, eventually winning gold by almost a full second, a huge margin in sliding sports.

Behind Weston, Germany took the other medals with Axel Jungk taking silver and Christopher Grotheer with bronze. They moved into second and third after the second run and held it throughout the competition to take the medals. Both had been on the podium at Beijing 2022, with Grotheer the defending champion while Jungk had also won silver there.