When the President of the United States Calls His Own Olympic Athletes "Losers" - SnowBrains

"In recent days, several U.S. athletes competing at the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics have spoken candidly about their mixed emotions about representing the United States on the global stage, saying that wearing the flag does not necessarily mean they feel aligned with everything happening in the country right now. Their comments-critical, personal, or political in nature-sparked debate, as athlete statements often do."

"Posting on his social media platform, Trump dismissed the athletes with the following post: "U.S. Olympic Skier, Hunter Hess, a real Loser, says he doesn't represent his Country in the current Winter Olympics. If that's the case, he shouldn't have tried out for the Team, and it's too bad he's on it. Very hard to root for someone like this. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!""

"While we can nitpick at the facts-Hess did not actually say that he doesn't represent the country, he said "just because I'm wearing the flag doesn't mean I represent everything that's going on in the U.S."- the one thing that stood out to me was the use of the word "loser." The moment deserves scrutiny, not because athletes are beyond criticism, but because of who delivered it."

Several U.S. athletes at the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics expressed mixed emotions about representing the United States, noting that wearing the flag does not mean alignment with everything happening in the country. Freestyle skier Hunter Hess's comment prompted a strongly worded social-media attack from President Donald Trump, who called Hess a "real Loser" and questioned his place on the team. Hess's actual words clarified that wearing the flag does not equal representing all U.S. actions. The episode raises questions about a political leader publicly deriding Olympic representatives. U.S. Olympians undergo years of sacrifice and rely on donations and sponsorships rather than tax funding.

Read at SnowBrains