ISU apologises after nominating 'offensive' Auschwitz uniform for costume of year

Anton Shulepov in his Auschwitz costume during the free skate program in Grenoble in November. Photograph: François Mori/AP

The International Skating Union has reversed its decision to nominate an “irresponsible and offensive” costume made up of Auschwitz uniforms for its end of year awards.

This year, Russia’s Anton Shulepov has competed in the free skate program to the theme from Schindler’s List, wearing a costume that uses elements of prisoner and guard uniforms from Auschwitz, where more than one million Jews, Poles, Roma and prisoners of war were killed by the Nazi regime during the second world war.

i am truly shocked at the inclusion of anton shulepov’s free skate costume in the best costume list. it is irresponsible and offensive. the horrors of genocide is not entertainment. remove it immediately.

— 🍃 irene 🍃 (@viewofsiIence) December 2, 2019

Some skating fans had already raised concerns when Shulepov wore the costume in early November at the Internationaux de France event. However, the criticism stepped up when Shulepov was nominated for costume of the year. One user on Twitter said “the horrors of genocide [are] not entertainment.”

In a statement to the Guardian, Jonathan A Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, was also critical of the nomination. “While we understand the need for skaters to be creative in their choice of costumes, Anton Shulepov’s apparent decision to evoke painful Holocaust imagery as part of his routine was insensitive and offensive. We are surprised that the International Skating Union initially posted a picture of this costume as a nominee for ‘costume of the year.’ Yellow Stars of David or other concentration camp imagery have no place in figure skating.”

By Monday morning, Shulepov’s nomination had been changed to his outfit for the short program – a plain blue costume that did not reference Auschwitz. The ISU said the nomination had been made in error.

“The ISU regrets that by error the wrong costume (Free Skating instead of Short Program costume) of Mr Shulepov has been presented for voting,” read a statement posted to the organisation’s official Twitter account. “This error has been corrected and the ISU sincerely apologizes for this mistake and the bad sentiments it has caused.”

The Guardian has approached the ISU for comment.