Ukraine secured three non-nominal short track licences for the 2026 Olympics, earned by Oleh Handey and Yelyzaveta Sydyorko, adding to the country’s total of 21 Winter Games quotas.

The Ukrainian national team will compete in three short track disciplines at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. This was reported by Suspilne.

Licences were allocated based on the results of four stages of the 2025 USI World Tour. The qualification events began in October and concluded with the tournament in Dordrecht, the Netherlands, on 27–30 November.

Licences in individual events were earned through the top 32 of the special Olympic qualification rankings for the 500 m and 1000 m distances, and the top 36 for the 1500 m. The three best results of each country’s highest-ranked short track athletes out of the four events were counted.

Ukraine’s licences were secured by Oleh Handey and Yelyzaveta Sydyorko. Handei remained within the qualifying positions in two events — the 500 m and 1500 m, where he finished 26th and 36th respectively.

Sydyorko earned for the blue-and-yellow team the right to compete in the 500 m distance, where she placed 29th, bringing Ukraine its only women’s licence for the 2026 Olympics.

All three licences are non-nominal, meaning it is not yet known who will represent Ukraine at the Games. In both men’s events, Ukraine will be represented by a single athlete.

If selected, 26-year-old Oleh Handey would compete at the Olympics for the second time in his career. At the 2022 Beijing Games, he raced in one event — the 500 m — finishing 27th. For 21-year-old Sydyorko, Italy could become her Olympic debut.

Ukraine was last represented in the women’s 500 m at the 1998 Olympics: in Nagano, Nataliya Sverchkova ended her run in the qualifying rounds.

Ukraine has had just one representative in the men’s 1500 m: Volodymyr Hryhoriev competed in the 2002 qualification. In the men’s 500 m, Ukrainian athletes have likewise not advanced past the opening stages of Olympic competition.

In total, Ukraine’s tally ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics now stands at 21 licences across six sports. The biathlon team has secured the most quotas — 10.

Ukraine’s licences for the 2026 Winter Olympics: