Ukraine skeleton racer gifted $200,000 by Shakhtar Donetsk owner after Winter Olympics ban

<ul><li><p>Football club donation equal to prize money Ukraine pays gold medallists</p></li><li><p>Heraskevych barred from racing while wearing ‘helmet of memory’</p></li></ul><p>The owner of Ukrainian football club Shakhtar Donetsk has donated more than $200,000 to skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/feb/12/ukraine-vladyslav-heraskevych-disqualified-winter-olympics-skeleton-helmet-protest-war-deaths">The athlete was disqualified</a> from the Milano Cortina Winter Games before competing over the use of a helmet depicting Ukrainian <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/feb/11/ukrainian-skeleton-athlete-helmet-protest-winter-olympics-ban">athletes killed in the war with Russia</a>, the club said on Tuesday.</p><p>The 27-year-old Heraskevych was disqualified last week when the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation jury <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/feb/09/ukraine-vladyslav-heraskevych-displays-images-athletes-killed-in-war-helmet-winter-olympics">ruled that imagery on the helmet</a> — depicting athletes killed since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 — <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/feb/12/vladyslav-heraskevych-ioc-skeleton-ukraine-helmet-winter-olympics">breached rules on athletes’ expression</a> at the Games.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/feb/18/ukraine-skeleton-racer-heraskevych-gifted-200000-winter-olympics-helmet-ban">Continue reading...</a>