President Trump criticizes American skier over Olympic remarks

President Trump criticized U.S. Olympic freestyle skier Hunter Hess after the athlete said it was “hard” to represent the United States at the Winter Olympics, according to a post from the president.

“U.S. Olympic Skier, Hunter Hess, a real Loser, says he doesn’t represent his Country in the current Winter Olympics,” Trump said in a post on Sunday. “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.”

Hess, 27, from Bend, Oregon, made the remarks at a press conference during the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games, where he is competing in freestyle skiing.

“It brings up mixed emotions to represent the U.S. right now. I think it’s a little hard,” Hess said. “There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of, and I think a lot of people aren’t.”

He later added, “Just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.”

Christopher Lillis, a teammate of Hess, also addressed political issues in the United States, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions, during the same press conference.

“I think that as a country, we need to focus on respecting everybody’s rights and making sure that we’re treating our citizens as well as anybody with love and respect,” Lillis said. “And I hope that when people look at athletes compete in the Olympics, they realize that that’s the America we’re trying to represent.”