ISU suspended Ukrainian Judge Balkov for life for trying to influence grades
Ukrainian referee Yuriy Balkov has been suspended for life from any activity related to competitions under the auspices of the International Skating Union (ISU) due to manipulation of the results. This was announced on the ISU website on April 2.
"Yuri Balkov is suspended for life from all ISU events and activities," the document says.
In October 2024, Balkov sent a text message to the judge who worked on the stage of the junior Grand Prix in Ljubljana, asking him to overestimate the scores of the Ukrainian dance pair Irina Pidgainaya - Artem Koval so that they would take first place. The judges did not respond to the request, but the duo from Ukraine still won the competition.
"I really hope for your help, several judges will support you," Balkov said in a message.
The judge to whom the request was addressed handed it over to the technical director of the competition, who notified the ISU leadership. The hearing in the case was held on March 5 in Munich, but Balkov was not present, citing his health and age. He confirmed that he had sent the message, but claimed that in this way he was only "expressing love" for ice dancing and the Ukrainian team.
The ISU Disciplinary Commission considered that the arbitrator was trying to influence the results of the competition, which caused serious damage to the reputation of figure skating.
Other judges of the competition, including Ukrainian Alena Lisova, Turkish Edge Esen and Swiss Roland Meder, were also checked, but their involvement in the manipulation was not proven.
Earlier, on February 14, it was reported that the winner of the Summer Paralympic Games in Tokyo in powerlifting, Ukrainian Mariana Shevchuk, was disqualified for four years for violating anti-doping rules. It is indicated that 28-year-old Shevchuk was disqualified from July 30, 2024 to July 29, 2028. Also, the athlete's results from the date of the positive sample were canceled.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
