The Cortina d’Ampezzo helmet scandal was the first acid test for IOC President Kirsty Coventry. The next one comes from the Epstein files.
Maidan Square in Kiev is the largest place of remembrance in Ukraine. Countless flags and photos commemorate people who lost their lives in the Russian war of aggression. Here the sports show meets Wladyslaw Heraskewytsch, the skeleton racer who was so often in the headlines at the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Heraskevych knows some of the faces on Maidan Square. “Unfortunately, there are countless of these little flags here. Each one represents a life story that was cut short too soon. This is definitely an incredibly emotional place,” he says.
IOC considers helmet a violation of the rules
The 27-year-old wanted to remember these stories in Cortina d’Ampezzo – on his skeleton helmet. More than 20 portraits of killed Ukrainian athletes were immortalized on it. Heraskewytsch wore the helmet in training and wanted to do the same in competition. But for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) this was a violation of the rules.
A conversation between IOC President Kirsty Coventry and Heraskewytsch shortly before his competition did not result in an agreement and he was disqualified. “I really wanted to see him in the race today. It was an emotional morning,” Coventry said through tears.
Sports lawyer Duval: “Completely disproportionate decision”
The responsible IOC commission had already decided on the disqualification the evening before. She did not refer to the ban on political propaganda, but rather to the so-called “Expression Guidelines” and Rule 40.2 of the Olympic Charter. The rule says all participants enjoy “Freedom of expression in line with the Olympic values”.
The sports lawyer Antoine Duval from Asser International Sports Law Center calls them “preventive disqualification” one “Excessive and completely disproportionate decision. The IOC was probably not convinced that they could actually argue that this was political propaganda. That then – this is the irony of the case – triggered the application of the Expression Guidelines. Guidelines that were supposed to protect the athletes’ freedom of expression were used as a legal basis to restrict the athletes’ freedom of expression.”
CAS confirmed IOC decision
Heraskewytsch went to the CAS Court of Arbitration for Sport, but its ad hoc department in Milan confirmed the IOC decision and stated: Wars and the memory of their victims always have a meaning “political connotation”. The competition must remain free of such statements.
However, sports lawyer Duval complains about gaps in the IOC rules. “There is no definition in the guidelines for either ‘appropriate expression’ or ‘statement with a political connotation’. So it appears to be largely at the discretion of the IOC to decide what type of expression has a political connotation and what does not.”
A few days after the disqualification, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded Heraskevych the country’s Order of Freedom. In an interview with the sports show in Kiev, the athlete announced that he would continue to challenge the CAS decision. “I want to prove that I haven’t broken any rules because I sincerely believe in them.”
The Casey Wasserman problem case
The Heraskewytsch case was the first acid test for the new IOC President Coventry. But it’s not the only one, the Olympics has an even bigger problem: Casey Wasserman, the head of the organizing committee for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. His name appears in the Epstein files recently released by the US Department of Justice.
Accordingly, in 2003, Wasserman exchanged intimate emails with Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s later convicted accomplice. Maxwell recruited underage girls who were sexually abused for US billionaire Epstein. Wasserman publicly apologized for the email exchange. The IOC is keeping a low profile. “Casey has published his statement – from the IOC’s perspective there is nothing for me to add,” said Coventry a good two weeks ago.
Headwind for Wasserman in Los Angeles
In Los Angeles, where Wasserman runs a powerful artists’ agency, the reaction was different. Since the revelations, prominent clients have left the agency and Wasserman now wants to sell them. However, he does not give up his position as head of the Olympic organizing committee, supported by its board.
There is resistance in politics, including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass saying that Wasserman should resign. A formal resolution is also being prepared that will officially call for Wasserman’s resignation as head of LA28.
Wasserman and his relationships
For journalist Alissa Walker, who has been following the preparations for the games for years, Wasserman’s dual strategy reveals one thing above all: the damage that he has long since caused. “The need to remove his name from the agency shows the urgency – and shows how important it was for the people represented there that they no longer wanted to be associated with him. That’s why it’s all the more confusing that LA28 stands by him.”
Wasserman was installed as boss primarily because of his good connections and the hope of finding sponsors. Is his brand toxic?
LA28 needs Donald Trump
The fact that the sport and LA28 hold back on criticism could have something to do with the White House. Wasserman has close ties to US President Donald Trump, personally presenting him with medals from the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
LA28 is dependent on Trump’s goodwill because the organization requires money from the state treasury, especially for infrastructure. So far this is still flowing. “Most people understand Wasserman’s role as: He ingratiates himself with the president and makes him feel like he is part of the project,” said journalist Walker. “He should think: These are his games. That’s why they often say ‘America’s games’ instead of ‘LA’s games’.”
Nevertheless, the pressure on Wasserman is growing – and with it the pressure on the IOC and its president.
