Ukraine's Zelenskiy thanks disqualified Olympian for being 'who you are'

MUNICH - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday awarded a top state honor to an Olympic skeleton racer who was disqualified from the Winter Games for wearing a helmet commemorating athletes killed in the war with Russia.

Zelenskiy, speaking to Vladyslav Heraskevych on the sidelines of the annual Munich Security Conference said he had great respect for "all the Olympians who supported you and your position."

"Medals are important for Ukraine and for you, but it seems to me that the most important thing is who you are," Zelenskiy said while presenting the racer with the Order of Freedom.

Heraskevych told the president the award was "huge" and that the athletes depicted on the helmet "deserve it even more. Because of their sacrifice, we are able to compete in the Olympics."

Heraskevych, 27, was disqualified at the Winter Games in Italy on Thursday when the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation jury ruled that the helmet's depiction of athletes killed since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 breached rules on political neutrality.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed his appeal on Friday. Heraskevych told reporters after the award ceremony that his disqualification was discriminatory as he had committed no violation of the Olympic Charter, a document he said he "really valued."

"But at the same time, I understand that this scandal had united people around the world about our problem and about the sacrifice of these great athletes, and I believe this goal is much more important than any medal," he said.

Speaking before the CAS hearing earlier in the day, Heraskevych said his exclusion and rules imposed by the International Olympic Committee were "an instrument of propaganda for Russia. I still receive a lot of threats from the Russian side."

(Reporting by Ayhan Uyanik and Ulrike Heil; Writing by Ron Popeski; Editing by Ethan Smith)