Ukraine's Heraskevych hopes to win appeal, but knows his chance of racing in Olympics is over

The Court of Arbitration for Sport heard the appeal of Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych surrounding his disqualification from the Milano-Cortina Games on Friday, though the slider knows he won't be competing in these Olympics even if he wins his case.

"Looks like this train has left," Heraskevych said in Milan on Friday.

His appeal lasted for about 2 1/2 hours and Heraskevych, draped in a Ukrainian flag, left the hearing smiling and saying he believes that CAS will rule in his favor. But he has left Cortina d'Ampezzo's Olympic Village already, has no plans to return to the mountains during these games and still believes he did the right thing.

"From Day 1, I told you that I think I'm right," Heraskevych said. "I don't have any regrets."

Meanwhile, his disqualification was justified because he insisted on bringing his messaging — a tribute helmet — onto the field of play, reiterated International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry.

Heraskevych planned to wear a helmet displaying the images of more than 20 Ukrainian athletes and coaches who have been killed since Russia invaded their country in 2022 was not in violation of the Olympic Charter.

"I never expected it to be such a big scandal," Heraskevych said, adding that the story only became big when the IOC, in his opinion, decided he could not wear what he calls "the memory helmet."

Speaking in Milan, a day after she visited with Heraskevych in Cortina d'Ampezzo moments before he was told that he could not participate in his Olympic race, Coventry repeated what the IOC has been pointing to for several days about the need to control how messages from athletes can be shared with the world.

"I think that he in some ways understood that but was very