The war dead pictured on banned Ukrainian athlete’s helmet

February 14, 2026 No Comments

The war dead pictured on banned Ukrainian athlete’s helmet3 hours agoShareSaveAlys DaviesShareSaveAFP via Getty ImagesVladyslav Heraskevych has been banned from competing in the Winter Olympics after saying he would only compete if he is allowed to wear his “helmet of remembrance”Ukrainian skeleton slider Vladyslav Heraskevych’s disqualification from the Winter Olympics over his helmet depicting fellow athletes killed since Russia’s full-scale invasion is the Games’ biggest controversy so far.Heraskevych was barred from the men’s skeleton in Milan-Cortina earlier this week after he refused to stop wearing it and on Friday his appeal was denied.

He has mentioned those featured on his helmet include teenage weightlifter Alina Perehudova, boxer Pavlo Ishchenko and ice hockey player Oleksiy Lohinov, adding that some of them were his friends.

More than 20 athletes appear on the helmet in total – here’s more on each of them.

Annotated graphic of Vladyslav Heraskevych wearing the helmet of remembrance featuring illustrations of Ukrainian athletes killed since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. Each picture is labelled with a number. On a list next to the picture are those visible on the helmet's front: 1. Ivan Kononenko, actor and athlete. 2. Daria Kurdel, dance. 3. Oleksiy Khabarov, shooting. 4. Taras Shpuk, coach. 5. Oleksiy Lohinov, hockey player. 6. Pavlo Ishchenko, strongman. 7. Mykyta Kozubenko, diving. 8. Alina Perehudova, weightlifter. 9. Nazar Zui, boxing and football. 10. Yevhen Malyshev, biathlete.

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Volodymyr Androschuk – track and field

Getty Images Close up of the helmet featuring an illustration of Volodymyr Androschuk, who has short hair and has a zip-up jacket on.

Androschuk died a few years after his 22nd birthday in January 2023 while fighting in the Bakhmut area of eastern Ukraine.

He represented his country at the international level, competing in decathlon and pentathlon events.

At one time he had hoped to qualify for the 2024 Olympics in Paris or the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, the New York Times unveiled, but by 2022 injuries meant he decided to volunteer for the army instead.

“It was his dream,” Oleksiy Kasyanov, the general secretary of Ukraine’s track and field federation and formerly its national decathlon coach, told the paper.

Karyna Bakhur – kickboxer

Getty Images Close up of the helmet showing an image of Karyna Bakhur, who has long hair and has lots of medals hanging from her neck. — Karyna Bakhur was 17 when she died

Bakhur was killed last year during Russian shelling in the Kharkiv region, north-eastern Ukraine.

The 17-year-old was a national kickboxing champion who represented Ukraine at national and international level.

She died a few weeks before her 18th birthday after suffering shrapnel wounds while running for shelter in the city of Berestyn.

Bakhur’s coach, Volodymyr Zibarov, told Ukrainian newspaper Pravda the athlete “had enormous potential”.

“We were supposed to leave tonight for the World Cup in Austria… Russian missile simply took Karyna from us one day earlier,” he mentioned.

Karyna Diachenko – rhythmic gymnast

Eleven-year-old Diachenko was a promising gymnast who died in the south-eastern city of Mariupol in March 2022, according to the memorial website Angels of Sport.

She had been inside her home with her family when a Russian air strike hit the building, killing her and her father instantly. Her mother and brother were taken to hospital, which was later hit by an air strike, killing them too.

Maksym Halinichev – boxer

Reuters A close up shot of the helmet featuring a black and white illustration of Maksym Halinichev. He is wearing boxing gloves and is sparring.

Halinichev died in 2023 in the Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine.

According to Ukrainian news outlet Tribuna, he refused to participate in a 2022 European boxing championship in order to volunteer as a soldier.

Speaking to Voice of America, one of his coaches mentioned once Halinichiev had seen the destruction caused by the war, he felt he had to fight.

“I have a little child. I don’t want her to live in occupation among the aggressor, among the Russians,” another of his coaches quoted him as saying.

Tribuna mentioned Halinichev was injured twice during the war but continued to fight until his death.

He won silver at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games and the 2021 European U22 Championships.

Pavlo Ishchenko – powerlifter

Getty Images Close up of the helmet featuring an image of Pavlo Ishchenko powerlifting. He is bald with a beard and moustache.

Ishchenko from Kyiv was a four-time strongman champion and former Ukrainian powerlifting champion.

He was also a coach, mentoring young people.

Ukrainian outlet Sport.ua mentioned following his death: “His legacy continues to inspire new generations of athletes who see in him a model of resilience, courage, and dedication to sport and the country.”

He died last year on the front lines.

Victoria Ivashko – judo

Nine-year-old Ivashko was a judo enthusiast who was killed while trying to shelter from Russian air strikes alongside her mother in Kyiv in June 2023.

Following her death, the Ukrainian Judo Federation’s president Mykhailo Koshlyak mentioned Ivashko’s death was “painful for the entire Ukrainian judo family”.

Oleksiy Khabarov – shooting

Khabarov, 31, was a “stalwart” of the Ukrainian national shooting sport for over a decade, according to the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF).

During his career he was a national record holder on multiple occasions, as well as a national champion.

In 2023 he joined the army and died in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine last year.

“He was an elite athlete who paused his career to defend his country, and will forever be in the hearts and memories of the Ukrainian people,” ISSF president Luciano Rossi mentioned in a statement following his death.

Ivan Kononenko – actor and athlete

Kononenko was a competitive strongman as well as an actor who starred in popular Ukrainian TV programmes.

He went to fight on the front lines in February 2022 and by November had suffered a severe injury, Pravda unveiled.

He designed his own rehabilitation programme, which he shared with others on social media, before later going back to fight on the front, becoming a senior lieutenant and commander of a rifle platoon.

Contact with him was lost during a combat mission in February last year and he has since been considered missing in action. A funeral was held for him in December.

Mykyta Kozubenko – diver

Reuters A close up of the helmet with a black and white illustration of Mykyta Kozubenko, who has short hair and is smiling.

Kozubenko was a diver and coach from Mykolaiv, southern Ukraine.

He died in combat last year aged 31.

“In the country’s most difficult time, Kozubenko took up arms to defend his native land,” the Ukrainian Sports Comittee mentioned when announcing his death.

Daria Kurdel – dancer

Kurdel was a 20-year-old dancer who died in the central city of Kryvyi Rih in July 2022 during a Russian air attack.

She had been training at a sports ground with her father at the time of the attack. Her parents were also injured but survived.

Kurdel won a number of international dance competitions before her death.

Andriy Kutsenko – cyclist

Kutsenko was a track cycling champion who had competed for Ukraine between 2006 and 2016, representing his country at European and World championships.

The 34-year-old lived in Italy with his family prior to the full-scale invasion, but came back to Ukraine to join the army not long afterwards.

He was killed in 2024 in a combat mission, according to regional officials.

Mariya Lebid – dancer

Fifteen-year-old Lebid was killed during a Russian missile strike on a high-rise building in Dnipro in 2023.

She was a ballroom dancer and president of her school’s student council.

According to Angels of Sport, during her school presidential election campaign she wrote about herself: “I’d like to tell you a little about myself: I’m 15 years old, I have a music education, and I’m passionate about learning English. My hobby is houseplant cultivation. I’m determined, friendly, and hardworking. I try to approach life with humour and positivity.”

Oleksiy Lohinov – ice hockey player

Getty Images Close up of the helmet featuring an image of Oleksiy Lohinov, who is resting his hands on his chin and has dark hair and a beard.

Lohinov was the former goalkeeper of the Ukrainian professional ice hockey team, Bilyi Bars (White Leopard).

He was killed at the age of 23 in the Luhansk region in 2023.

Yevhen Malyshev – biathlete

Malyshev was 19 when he died on the front lines in Kharkiv.

He was a former biathlete who competed in the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics in Lausanne, Switzerland.

He was posthumously awarded an Order For Courage in 2022.

Alina Perehudova – weightlifter

Fourteen-year-old Perehudova was killed during Russian shelling of Mariupol in March 2022.

She died shortly after leaving her house with her mother when an explosion took place, according to Pravda. Her brother ran out after them and was shot by a Russian sniper, it added.

Perehudova was a candidate for the national Ukrainian weightlifting team and was preparing to take part in a European Championship.

Roman Polishchuk – high jumper

Polischchuk was a track and field athlete who specialised in the high jump.

He joined Ukraine’s armed forces in the first few days of the full-scale invasion and died in March 2023.

Dmytro Sarpar – figure skater

Getty Images Close up of the helmet featuring a black and white image of Dmytro Sarpar, who has dark hair and thick eyebrows.

Sharpar was a 25-year-old figure skater who died on the front lines near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine in 2023.

Originally from Kharkiv, he won a silver medal in the Ukrainian Championships in 2016 and took part in the Youth Winter Olympics in Norway that same year.

After giving up professional figure skating, he became a professional performer in ice shows.

Taras Shpuk – coach

Reuters Close up of the helmet featuring an illustration of Taras Shpuk, who is bearded and is wearing a black cap and jacket.

Shpuk joined the Ukrainian army as part of a volunteer battalion in 2014.

He went on to be involved in veteran sports and coached Ukraine in an Invictus Games.

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion he rejoined the army and died in November 2023.

Kateryna Troyan – track and field

Former professional athlete Troyan died in June 2025 in the Pokrovsk area of eastern Ukraine, aged 32, after being wounded during a combat mission.

She was also a programmer and journalist and worked at an international IT company before volunteering for the army in 2024.

According to Angels of Sport, she operated drones on more than 1,000 combat missions.

Andriy Yaremenko – wrestler

Reuters Close up of a black and white illustration of Andriy Yaremenko on the helmet. He has short, dark hair and is smiling.

Greco-Roman wrestler Yaremenko was a member of the Ukrainian national team.

He died a few days before his 26th birthday in December.

He had dreamed of becoming a coach and had studied for a masters in physical culture and sports, Angels of Sport mentioned.

He was killed during a combat mission.

Friends and colleagues described him as someone with “a keen sense of justice, inner balance, and a big heart,” Angels of Sport mentioned.

Fedir Yepifanov – fencer

Reuters Close up of the helmet featuring a black and white illustration of Fedir Yepifanov. He is drawn from the side and has short, dark hair.

Yepifanov was a national fencing champion in Ukraine before suspending his career to fight on the front lines.

He joined the army in the first days of the full-scale invasion at the age of 18 and died at the front in 2023.

Nazar Zui – boxer and footballer

Zui, 13, loved boxing and football and played the latter for a local team in Mariupol.

He died in March 2022 after a Russian air strike hit a high-rise building where the family was seeking shelter. His parents were also killed.

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