Pavel criticised IOC for disqualifying Heraskevych: "I don’t think it’s fair decision"
The President of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, considers the International Olympic Committee's decision to disqualify Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych to be unfair.
He made this statement in an interview with Odkryto, as reported by Censor.NET.
"I don't think it's a fair decision, because it's not political propaganda that could offend anyone. It's a sign of respect... I think the Olympic Committee could make a gesture here and take it as a sign of respect," Pavel said.
At the same time, the Czech leader stressed that he opposes allowing Russian athletes to participate in major international competitions until Russia ends its war against Ukraine.
"I think this is the right move. And although there is pressure to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate not only in the Olympic Games but also in various championships, I think it is good, also in terms of certain trust in the world, rules, values, to adhere to the fact that a state that is waging an aggressive war against another state should not participate in the Olympic Games," the head of state emphasized.
According to him, given that Russia has been violating international law for a long time and the war in Ukraine has lasted longer than World War II on the Eastern Front, the restrictions should remain in place "until this conflict is resolved and a certain peace is concluded."
Pavel also met personally with Vladyslav Heraskevych on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.
During his stay in Italy, the Czech president supported his national team.
The story of disqualification at the 2026 Games
- Earlier, Heraskevych was disqualified before his first race at the 2026 Olympic Games. The reason was the athlete's intention to participate in the "Memorial Race."
- The day before, the IOC banned the use of this piece of equipment. If he broke the rules, the Ukrainian athlete could have been disqualified.
- The situation caused a stir in the sporting world.
