JD Vance Sends a Bold Message to Olympic Athletes After Being Booed at Opening Ceremony

JD Vancethinks Olympic athletes should stick to sports, not politics.

The vice president recently criticized athletes who use their platform at the Games to speak about politics, telling reporters on Tuesday, Feb. 11 that Olympians who do so “should expect some pushback.”

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“You’re not there to pop off about politics,” Vance said about the athletes competing in the 2026 Winter Games in Milan, as seen in interview footage obtained by USA Today. “You’re there to play a sport. You’re there to represent your country and hopefully win a medal.”

“So when Olympic athletes enter the political arena, they should expect some pushback,” Vance added.

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Though he noted that it’s not uncommon for Team USA athletes use the opportunity at the Olympics to speak out about politics, the vice president said he had some “advice” for those representing the country in the Winter Games.

“My advice for them would be to try to bring the country together,” Vance stated. “When you’re representing the country, you’re representing democrats and republicans.”

Vance, 41, was notably met with boos from the crowd after appearing on the jumbotron during the Olympics opening ceremony, though he still insisted on Wednesday that “most Olympic athletes, whatever their politics, are doing a great job.”

“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 represent your country well,” he further stated.

Vance’s comments come after Team USA freestyle skier Hunter Hess spoke out against ICE at an Olympics press conference, stating, “Just because I wear the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.”

Donald Trump later took aim at Hess on Truth Social, lashing out to call the athlete a “real loser,” while claiming it’s “very hard to root for someone like [Hess].”

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