“I was prepared for the reprimand”: Ukrainian Paralympian warned for “Stop War” earrings after winning gold

Ukrainian para-biathlete Oleksandra Kononova won two medals at the 2026 Winter Paralympics but also walked away with an official warning — for two words on her earrings, Suspilne Sport reported on 8 March. International Paralympic Committee (IPC) representatives told Kononova after her gold-medal sprint that "Stop War" jewelry violated competition regulations. The incident is the latest in a series of cases in which Ukrainian athletes have faced official restrictions on anti-war and patriotic gear at the 2026 Winter Games in Italy.

"Stop War" earrings draw official warning

Kononova collected two individual medals at the 2026 Winter Paralympics. She won gold in the para-biathlon sprint in the standing class, then took bronze in the individual race.

Kononova wore the earrings during the para-biathlon sprint on 7 March. After the race, International Paralympic Committee officials told her the "Stop War" inscription violated competition rules.

"After the sprint, they warned me and said that under the regulations, the 'Stop War' inscription on earrings is not permitted — even though I was wearing them during the race," Kononova told Suspilne Sport in an exclusive interview. 

She said she had been fully prepared for the reprimand. 

"I feel comfortable because I was ready for the warning. This is my state of mind when I put on patriotic earrings, clothes, uniform, flag. It means a lot to me — I live for this, I work for this. This is what inspires me in sport: my country, anthem, flag. Everything related to all of this is with me," she said.

The following day Kononova competed in different patriotic earrings and won bronze in the individual race.

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A pattern from the Olympics to the Paralympics

The warning to Kononova follows several incidents at the Milan Winter Olympics in which Ukrainian athletes faced official restrictions on anti-war and patriotic gear.

Olympic officials barred freestyle skier Kateryna Kotsar from competing in a helmet bearing "Be brave like Ukrainians." They also blocked short-track skater Oleh Handei from using a helmet carrying a quote by Ukrainian poet Lina Kostenko. The International Olympic Committee disqualified skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych before his first race after he refused to remove a helmet depicting Ukrainian athletes killed by the Russians amid the ongoing war.