"We wanted to wear black armbands to mourn the people who have died in Kiev, but the IOC told us it was not allowed," Bogdana Matsotska said. "In these conditions it is simply not possible to compete. We don't feel comfortable here and we can't compete."The 24-year-old had already finished 27th in the women's super-G and 43rd in the giant slalom at the Games, and was due to enter the slalom competition on Friday. She was competing at her second Olympics, having represented Ukraine at the 2010 Vancouver games.Matsotska is still in Sochi, together with her father, Oleg Matsotskiy, who is also her coach. He said they had been asked not to leave by the head of Ukraine's Olympic delegation, Sergei Bubka, a pole vaulter and formerly an MP in the ruling Regions party of Ukraine's president, Viktor Yanukovych.There have also been attempts to persuade the skier to compete. Matsotska said she had considered competing and shouting "glory to Ukraine", the main slogan of the protesters in Kiev, when she crossed the finishing line. She has made a similar protest before, but decided that in these circumstances the only possible option was not to compete at all."We respect Bubka and we respect the team, of course," said her father. "We don't want to cause agitation. But we don't want to compete in the name of this government."At least 33 people died in Kiev on Thursday as clashes between riot police and protesters intensified after a brief truce broke down. The violence is the culmination of three months of protests against the government of Yanukovych.Matsotska and her father are mainly based in Switzerland and Austria, but said that on trips through Ukraine to renew visas in the past few months, they had dropped into the main protest encampment, known as the Maidan, in Independence Square. Now, she wants to return as soon as possible to show her support for those protesting against Yanukovych."We are trying any way we can to get home, but we can't get tickets at the moment," she said. Her father added that the Ukrainian delegation was keen for them to stay until the end of the games, on Sunday.The IOC's spokesperson, Mark Adams, said on Thursday morning that the organisation had not banned black armbands, insisting that the Ukrainian delegation itself had not asked to wear them."My understanding is they had a discussion about what would be the most appropriate and best sort of thing to do. They decided to do other things," said Adams.When asked to speak about whether the IOC did not specifically ban the wearing of armbands, he said: "I don't think it got to that stage. It wasn't on the table. They discussed what they wanted to do and they decided that it would be a minute's silence, the team to be together, and so on."However, the Ukrainian delegation on Wednesday put a statement on its website saying that it had indeed asked to wear armbands, and were told by the IOC that that was inappropriate.The IOC frequently says that any form of protest or political statement, of which it apparently believes includes black armbands, is not desirable.Adams said: "There are 2,800 athletes here. As you can imagine, there are a lot, sadly, a lot of people with personal tragedy in their lives. Some with big political tragedies, some with personal tragedies, friends, loved ones, some athletes, some non-athletes. The idea is to try to help them to find other ways, individual or collectively, to mark those moments."In the Olympic Village several Ukrainian flags could be seen draped over the balconies of athletes' rooms with black armbands attached to them. The team also gathered and held a minute of silence.It is thought that some of the other Ukrainian team members have already returned to their country. Matsotska said she had not discussed the decision to withdraw with any other members of the Ukrainian team and did not know if others would make a similar decision.A statement released by the Ukrainian delegation on Wednesday read: "We are shocked by the events that occurred yesterday in Kiev. We are thinking about our families and loved ones back home in Ukraine, and we are doing our best to honour them on the fields of play here in Sochi."Matsotska told of her plan when she does manage to get back to Ukraine: "When we get back I want to go straight to Maidan. I just want to help the protest; if not with my presence then I will find another way."(theguardian.com)ANN.Az