JD Vance has told Winter Olympians to stick to sport and not ‘pop off about politics’ after multiple US athletes in Italy spoke out about the turmoil under the Trump administration at home.
Team USA freestyle skiers Hunter Hess and Chris Lillis, as well as the ice skater Amber Glenn and curler Rich Ruohonen, have all spoken out about escalating issues in the US during the past fortnight.
Now, Vance has fired back. The vice president, who was booed during the opening ceremony last Friday, said: ‘Yes, you’re going to have some Olympic athletes who pop off about politics. I feel like that happens every Olympics.
‘My advice to them would be to try to bring the country together, and when you’re representing the country, you’re representing Democrats and Republicans.
‘You’re there to play a sport, and you’re there to represent your country and hopefully win a medal. You’re not there to pop off about politics.’
He added: ‘When Olympic athletes enter the political arena, they should expect some pushback.
‘But most Olympic athletes, whatever their politics, are doing a great job, certainly enjoy the support of the entire country, and I think recognize that the way to bring the country together is not to show up in a foreign country and attack the President of the United States, but it’s to play your sport and to represent the country well.’
The political discourse has been frenzied at the Milan Cortina 2026 Games. Glenn, an LGBTQ+ rights activist, says she received a ‘scary amount of hate’ online after stating the queer community has experienced a ‘hard time’ in the existing climate.
Lillis and Ruohonen criticized the aggressive Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in Minnesota, with Lillis saying he was ‘heartbroken’.
Hess was called a ‘real loser’ by Trump after saying it ‘brings up mixed emotions’ to represent the United States in the current political landscape.
