Banned Heraskevych accuses IOC of fuelling Russia’s propaganda
Sean Ingle
Vladyslav Heraskevych has accused the International Olympic Committee of doing Russia’s propaganda for them after he was barred from racing in the Winter Games because he wanted to wear a “helmet of memory” in honour of Ukraine’s war dead.
Speaking to journalists following the IOC’s decision, the 27-year-old was asked how he felt. “Emptiness,” he replied. “Yesterday was amazing training. I could be among the medalists in this event, but suddenly, because of some interpretation of the rules which I do not agree with, I am not able to compete.
“I was at many funerals when I was in Ukraine and it’s a truly terrible tragedy that young people at such a young age were killed for nothing,” he added. “Because of their sacrifice, we’re able to be here today, and I want to honour them, and I want to honour their families.”
Heraskevych also thanked the IOC’s president, Kirsty Coventry, for meeting him at 8.30am, an hour before the skeleton competition began, and for what he said were her kind words to him. But he added: “But, as I told her, this situation plays along with Russian propaganda and it does not look good. I believe it’s a terrible mistake that was made by the IOC.”
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James Wallace
That’s it from me as the sun sets on day six in Milano Cortina. Thanks for your company, we’ll be back in the morning for more Winter Olympic thrills, spills, slides and something that rhymes with slides. Goodnight!
Winter Olympics Day Six Round Up
Ukraine’s Vladyslav Heraskevych was kicked out of competing in the skeleton by the IOC after his helmet featured images of athletes killed during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Speaking to journalists following the IOC’s decision, the 27-year-old was asked how he felt. “Emptiness,” he replied. “Yesterday was amazing training. I could be among the medalists in this event, but suddenly, because of some interpretation of the rules which I do not agree with, I am not able to compete.”
Updated at 17.05 EST
Tom Dart
The American duo of Madison Chock and Evan Bates, the reigning three-time world champions contentiously missed out on Olympic ice dance gold on Wednesday despite a flawless skate. But the controversy surrounding the event is not merely a debate over artistic and technical merits.
Gold went by a narrow margin to the French duo of Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron. It was a stunning achievement for a partnership that is less than a year old. But the union was forged after the fallout from sexual assault allegations levelled at Fournier Beaudry’s boyfriend and former ice dance partner, while Cizeron is the subject of allegations of abusive conduct from his erstwhile skating partner.
Nikolaj Sørensen, a 36-year-old Danish-Canadian ice dancer who is dating Fournier Beaudry, was banned by the Canadian skating governing body for at least six years in 2024 for “sexual maltreatment” related to allegations that he sexually assaulted an American coach and former skater in 2012. He denied the accusations and the suspension was overturned in 2025 on a technicality relating to questions of jurisdiction.
Day Six in Pics: Some belters in here. Worth seeking out some of the snaps from the boarders at their zenith in the snowboard halfpipe competition too. Gnarly, as the kids do not say.
Medal Count: We’re coming to the close of the action on day six, here’s a look at the latest medal table:
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Bryan Armen Graham
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe:
The snowfall coming down on Livigno Snow Park on Thursday night helped produce one of the bigger Olympic upsets in snowboard history, as Chloe Kim’s bid to become the first rider to win three consecutive Olympic halfpipe gold medals fell just short.
Kim finished with a best score of 88.00 from her opening run, settling for silver behind surprise winner Choi Gaon of South Korea, whose heroic third run after an early fall earned 90.25 and rewrote the Olympic record books. Japan’s Mitsuki Ono took bronze with 85.00.
For a sport that has spent nearly a decade orbiting Kim’s technical and competitive standard, the result felt seismic – not because she rode poorly, but because someone else finally assembled the perfect combination of risk, execution and timing on the night it mattered most.
Share🥇 Gold for Jens van ‘t Wout in the men’s 1000m short track speed skating
What a final lap! Chaos on the ice as there is a mad dash for the finish line! It is a Dutch double this evening as Jens van ‘t Wout snatches it at the last! The Dutchman was in a real dogfight with the Canadian William Dandjinou, the pair overtook each other multiple times during the frenetic race, but van ‘t Wout takes it.
China’s Long Sun somehow took Silver despite being at the back of the racing pack for most of it and an emotional Rim Jong-un, the Korean 18 year old snared Bronze. I need a brew and a lie down.
*You have no idea how many times I’ve checked that apostrophe by the way
Jens van ‘t Wout just beats Long Sun to Gold! Photograph: Elsa/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 16.33 EST
🥇 Gold for Xandra Velzeboer in the women’s 500m short track speed skating
Heart stopping stuff! All of the racers make it through this time after the false start and Xandra Velzeboer takes it by a few lengths! She led the whole way round, a blur of orange, and held off a tight chasing pack. Arianna Fontana takes silver and with it her 13th Olympic medal.
The home crowd cheer Fontana loudly as she does an emotional lap or three of honour.
Canada’s Courtney Sarault takes the bronze. Phew.
Xandra Velzeboer crosses the line to take Gold! Photograph: Stephanie Scarbrough/APShare
Updated at 16.05 EST
Women’s Curling Round Robin: China close it out, they beat Great Britain by 7-4 after a hard fought match. Jenn Dodds and her teammates look disheartened but they’ll dust themselves down and be back pushing the granite tomorrow afternoon against South Korea.
Short Track Speed Skating: They’re off! Ah. They’re down! A collision on the first corner sees Selma Poutsma slide away like Liam Gallager in 1995. We’ll have a re-start in a few minutes.
Selma Poutsma hits the pads! Photograph: Stephanie Scarbrough/APShare
Updated at 15.49 EST
Short Track Speed Skating: The Women’s 500m gold medal race will be underway shortly. The ice skate blades they are using in these races are huge, they resemble two extra large Toblerones. I might just be peckish.
The home favourite – Italy’s Arianna Fontana – won her first Olympic short-track speed skating medal at the Turin Winter Olympics in 2006 aged just 15 years old. She will go against the Canadian pair of Courtney Sarault and Kim Boutin with the flying Dutchwoman Xandra Velzeboer and her compatriot Selma Poutsma (who qualified as the fastest third place skater) completing the final line up.
They are being called out one by one and the crowd in the stadium cheer wildly for each finalist, the roof is nearly blown off as Fontana makes her entrance!
Women’s Curling Round Robin: It is not looking good for Great Britain, they are 6-3 down after nine ends and look a bit deflated, they do have the hammer but China have raised their level and after being 2-0 down are looking likely to take the match.
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: Chloe Kim was the first competitor over to congratulate Choi Gaon. A class act.
Beau Dure has the final standings as a tense and dramatic event comes to a close with a new Olympic champion:
90.25 Choi Gaon (South Korea) Gold
88.00 Chloe Kim (USA) Silver
85.00 Mitsuki Ono (Japan) Bronze
—
84.00 Sara Shimuzu (Japan)
81.75 Rise Kudo (Japan)
80.75 Cai Xuetong (China)
78.00 Wu Shaotong (China)
77.00 Bea Kim (USA)
68.25 Sena Tomita (Japan)
33.50 Queralt Castellet Ibanez (Spain)
27.50 Elizabeth Hosking (Canada)
5.50 Maddie Mastro (USA)
Share🥇Gold for South Korea’s Choi Gaon in the women’s halfpipe!
Beau Dure
You can’t script this. Well, maybe in the Star Wars universe, where Darth Vader struck down the people who guided him in the Jedi (Obi-Wan Kenobi) and Sith (Emperor Palpatine) ways.
The mere fact that she upset her mentor’s quest for a threepeat would be dramatic enough. But she did it after a terrible fall in her first run. The Olympics results feed said she had withdrawn from the competition. Instead, she raced to the line for a second run on which she also fell.
Then her third run was majestic. She put the pressure on Kim to go even bigger, and Kim couldn’t do it.
The Olympics, folks. Where else do you see this?
Chloe Kim crashes on her final run and takes Silver. Photograph: Dylan Martinez/ReutersShare
Updated at 15.12 EST
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: Chloe Kim is the only boarder left. It’s all on this, she has to deliver. This is the first time in her Olympic career where she’s been put in this position, her other Gold’s have come with a victory lap. There will be no such thing today, here we go!
CURRENT PODIUM
90.25 Choi
88.00 Kim (one more run)
85.00 Ono
Beau Dure
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: Choi knocks Kim out of first!
It’s snowing hard again, and Choi Gaon is in the pipe, which is impressive in its own right after her devastating crash in the first run. She loads up with three 900s, and everything is clean.
Up to the judges … who are taking some times …
90.25! She’s ahead of her mentor Chloe Kim!
Gaon Choi flies into pole position! Photograph: Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 14.56 EST
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: It is bucketing it down with snow on the half pipe, is it contributing to how many wipeouts and failed landings we’ve seen?
Ouch! Canada’s Elizabeth Hosking hits the lip of the wall and crashes down onto her back. I think she’s ok, she unclips from her board but is being seen to by the medics.
Short Track Speed Skating: Zhang Chutong of China and Julie Letai of the United States collide for a second time! This is chaos. I feel like Alan Partridge commentating on the tour de France.
Whoops! Photograph: Stephanie Scarbrough/APShare
Updated at 14.47 EST
Women’s Curling Round Robin: It’s all square at 2-2 between Great Britain and China at the halfway stage. It’s an edgy affair as Mary J Blige did not sing. Mary J can’t curl for Highland toffee I bet.
Beau Dure
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: What else can Chloe Kim do? Maybe launch herself into orbit?
The first three tricks are the same as in her first run – 720, switch with big amplitude, double cork 1080 again, and she tries back-to-back double corks!
But no, she can’t land that one. If she finishes that off in the last run, judges will run out of numbers.
Standings after second run
Everyone gets one more chance to improve …
88.00 C. Kim (USA)
85.00 Ono (Japan)
81.75 Kudo (Japan) – improved from 77.50
80.75 Cai (China) – improved from 73.00
77.00 B. Kim (USA) – improved from 7.25
70.25 Wu (China) – improved from 67.75
68.25 Tomita (Japan) – improved from 23.50
Hosking (Canada) has come close to completing a strong routine but hasn’t done so.
Short Track Speed Skating: This is fast. I’d argue too fast to live blog… but the women’s 500m quarter-final sees a new Olympic record straightaway!
Flying Dutchwoman Xandra Velzeboer, the current world record holder, scorches the ice with a time of 41.583.s!
Xandra Velzeboer lads the way in the short track. Photograph: Natacha Pisarenko/APShare
Updated at 14.34 EST
Beau Dure
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe:
Chloe Kim is just awesome.
There’s no other way to describe that.
OK, we’ll try – backside 720, switch backside air, switch double cork 1080 …
A mere mortal, upon landing that trick, would take it easy the rest of the way. She didn’t.
Good luck beating that.
88.00
Standings after first run
Reminder: Only the best run of the three will count.
88.00 Kim (USA)
85.00 Ono (Japan)
77.50 Kudo (Japan)
73.00 Cai (China)
67.75 Wu (China)
No one else completed a run without a fall, so those scores really aren’t worth collecting here.
Chloe Kim bossing the halfpipe. Photograph: Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 14.20 EST
Women’s Curling Round Robin: Great Britain take a 2-0 lead against China heading into the fourth end. The Chinese team were just guilty of a “hog-line violation” the first one at these games. It’s a bit like a foot fault in tennis – the thrower must release their stone before crossing the green line.
“There was a lingering finger,” says BBC Sport’s Logan Gray on comms. I think I had a pint of Lingering Finger at Ilkley Beer Festival in 2008. Malty.
Sophie Sinclair sends down a stone. Photograph: Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 14.19 EST
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: Chloe Kim is about to attempt her first run… Snoop Dogg is in the house too!
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: It’s still 0-0 in the curling but I’m distracted by the shrieks on my second screen as both Sena Tomita of Japan and Canada’s Elizabeth Hosking wipeout! Thankfully both are ok and will have two more attempts to pull off something special. Each competitor has three runs and only their best score counts. Pressure on!
Elizabeth Hosking hits the snow.
Photograph: Hannah McKay/ReutersShare
Updated at 14.03 EST
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: Chloe Kim will have the chance to watch all of her fellow competitors strut their stuff before she heads out last in the first run: Follow along with Beau Dure here:
Running order:
1. Wu Shaotong (China)
2. Mitsuki Ono (Japan)
3. Bea Kim (USA)
4. Sena Tomita (Japan)
5. Elizabeth Hosking (Canada)
6. Queralt Castellet Ibanez (Spain)
7. Choi Goan (South Korea)
8. Cai Xuetong (China)
9. Rise Kudo (Japan)
10. Maddie Mastro (USA)
11. Sara Shimizu (Japan)
12. Chloe Kim (USA)
Women’s Curling Round Robin: Jen Dodds and her team have just got underway against China at the curling centre. Britain won gold in Beijing but only Dodds remains from that team, they are thus not considered favourites but are on record saying they are “dreaming of a medal”.
Steve Cram’s soothing North East of England tones waft out of the telly, we’re in safe hands folks. It’s 0-0 after three ends.
Share🥇 Gold for Germany in the Luge Team Relay!
They beat Austria into silver by half a second and Italy take the bronze. The Germans are the masters of this event, it’s a fourth consecutive gold for them. Team members and legendary sliders Tobias Arlt and Tobias Wendl also become eight-time gold medal winners in the process.
German jubilations! Photograph: Franck Fife/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 13.38 EST
Luge Team Relay: Just Germany left to slide, Austria sit in Silver and Italy have just taken the Bronze position! Julia Taubitz to lead Germany off and she’s already the quickest out of the traps…
Luge Team Relay: The Polish team have a nightmare on the very first bit of the course, sliding sideways and hitting the ice with a thud which slows them right down. That mistake will basically cost them posting any sort of competitive time.
The Ukraine team slide down and sit in second position currently with a time of 3 mins 46 seconds. At the end of the run the team make a unified statement, taking a knee and raising their helmets above their heads. Quietly powerful.
ShareSean Ingle
To be a Olympic-class skeleton racer requires extraordinary guts and impeccable nerve, as the corners loom and then whoosh past at frightening speed. So did anybody really believe that Ukraine’s Vladyslav Heraskevych would lose his when the world’s eyes were upon him?
Not the International Olympic Committee, who flipped between threats of expulsion and sweet talk over the last fortnight, without coming close to changing his mind. And certainly not those of us who have spoken and messaged Heraskevych, and found a man utterly prepared to sacrifice his dream of winning a Winter Olympic medal for a higher purpose.
In public and private his message was the same: he would not back down. And if the IOC barred from competing in his “helmet of memory”, which commemorates some of the 600 Ukrainian athletes and coaches killed by Russian bombs and bullets since 2022, he would accept his fate.
And when the moment came, shortly before 8.30am on Thursday, he met it with a powerful but resolute message: “This is price of our dignity,” alongside a photo of his helmet.
For the IOC it must have been like watching a public relations car crash from the passenger seat. One that everyone knew was going to happen – and nothing could be done about it.
Women’s Snowboard Halfpipe: The USA’s Chloe Kim will be going for gold from around 18:30pm GMT. Our colleagues in the US have got a dedicated blog up and running as Kim attempts to bag an incredible, gravity defying third Olympic gold in a row after becoming the first woman to successfully defend the Olympic halfpipe title in 2022.
Join Beau Dure for all the buildup:
Luge Team Relay: Romania are the first team out of the traps. They get down with a few bumps that slow them right down, 3 mins and 49 seconds isn’t going to cut it (apparently). As ever the camerawork on these sliding events is fast, frenetic and fantastic. So many cutaways. It’s a bit like watching an Edgar Wright movie. Baby Luger?
Germany will be the last of the nine teams to go, they are the defending champs and the team to beat. Austria and Latvia could challenge them and China are an outside bet.
Luge Team Relay: Is just getting underway at the Cortina sliding centre. This event is an absolute riot, the crowds are packed in and cheering and we’ve not go to our first sliders yet.
The team consists of women’s singles, women’s doubles, men’s singles and men’s doubles. They set off at the top and slide down as fast as they can, when they reach the bottom they thwack a button which signals their team-mate at the top of the hill to get sliding. Imagine a university drinking boat race but with far fewer blokes in gilets from the home counties braying and drinking ale.
USA’s Marcus Mueller and Ansel Haugsjaa in the men’s doubles run. Photograph: Al Bello/Getty ImagesThe Ukrainian luge relay team in a show of solidarity for disqualified teammate Vladyslav Heraskevych Photograph: Richard Heathcote/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 13.02 EST
James Wallace
Thanks Tanya and hello everyone. I come armed with my kitchen broom and have donned my slipper socks to bring you all the action from Milano Cortina via my sofa and various watching devices. We’ve got curling, snowboard halfpipe and luge relay to get stuck into over the next few hours.
Tune in and join in on the email at the left flank of this page.
Ice hockey:
Canada have taken a 3-0 lead against Czech Republic, Bo Harvat slotting the puck after 37 minutes.
Updated at 13.18 EST
That’s all from me for today, Jim Wallace will carry you through to the close.
Ice hockey: With seven minutes of the second period left, Canada are 2-0 up against the Czech Republic. An entertaining flurry of sticks, shoulder pads, flying ice and heavy duty body hits.
Women’s 5000m speed skating: What a thrilling race! Lollobrigida crosses the line, squints at the clock, unzips her hood and grins to the rafters. Her second medal in less than a week.
Merel Conijn, who takes silver, goes across to hug her, Ragne Wilund, of Norway, wins bronze. In the margins of sporting history, Belgium’s Sandrine Tas throws her arms to the sky in despair, pipped into fourth at the last.
Share🥇 Francesca Lollobrigida takes gold in the Women’s 5000m speed skating
With one lap to go, Lollobrigida looks done, arms all over the place, she somehow staggers to the line – and she’s snatched it! By 0.10 seconds.
A second Gold for Francesca Lollobrigida! Photograph: Yves Herman/ReutersShare
Updated at 11.51 EST
Women’s 5000m speed skating: after 3000m, Francesca Lollobrigida, gold medallist on Saturday, is on course for gold. Martina Sablikova, who had to withdraw from the same event after illness, is more than five seconds behind.
Here comes Francesca Lollobrigida! Photograph: Teresa Suárez/EPAShare
Updated at 11.43 EST