Judge Balkov has been permanently disqualified for attempting to influence the assessment of Ukrainian figure skaters.

The International Skating Union (ISU) has imposed a lifetime disqualification on Ukrainian judge Yuriy Balkov for attempting to influence the official results of competitions. According to information from the Tribune, in November last year, the ISU Disciplinary Commission launched an investigation into the possible attempt to influence the results of the Junior Grand Prix in figure skating.

According to the competition results, the Ukrainian pair showed the best performance in ice dance. An oral hearing in the case took place on March 5, 2025, in Munich, where Yuriy Balkov assured that he had no connections to any possible manipulation of the competition results.

However, the ISU Disciplinary Commission decided to permanently suspend Balkov from activities and participation in ISU events. The other three accused were acquitted due to insufficient evidence of involvement in the manipulations. It is worth noting that Balkov had previously also received a disqualification for attempting to manipulate results in the 1998 Olympic Games in Nagano.