President Donald Trump has called U.S. freeski Olympian Hunter Hess “a real Loser” and said it was “very hard to root for someone like this” in response to the 27-year-old’s comments about representing his country at these Winter Olympics.
Asked at a news conference Friday what it means to represent the United States in the current climate domestically and internationally, Hess said it “brings up mixed emotions” and was “a little hard.”
“There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of and think a lot of people aren’t,” Hess said. “If it aligns with my moral values, I feel like I’m representing it. But just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean that I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.”
Hess, a 10-year member of the U.S. team who won’t make his Olympic debut until the men’s freeski halfpipe competition on Feb. 19, said he was proud to represent his “friends and family back home, and all the things that I believe are good about the United States.”
The comment did not take long to ignite. From conservative media outlets to social media influencers, Hess rapidly became the face of an Olympic Games being played amid the backdrop of political volatility in the U.S. and growing strains on international relations.
Trump entered the fray Sunday with a post on his Truth Social platform: “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!”
At the time of publication, Hess had not publicly replied to the President’s post. His representative indicated to The Athletic that the athlete did not intend to respond anytime soon.
U.S. Olympians Kate Gray, Hunter Hess, Birk Irving, Alex Ferreira, Nick Goepper, Svea Irving, Riley Jacobs and Abby Winterberger attend the Team USA Welcome Experience on February 5 in Milan. (Joe Scarnici / Getty Images)
Hess, one of four members of the 2026 U.S. halfpipe squad, was onstage Friday with teammates Alex Ferreira, Nick Goepper and Birk Irving, along with women’s U.S. halfpipe team members Svea Irving, Kate Gray, Riley Jacobs and Abby Winterberger.
All responded to the same question.
Hess, who qualified for the U.S. team through a series of international podium finishes, including a second-place finish at the U.S. Grand Prix in Aspen, did not say that he did not represent the United States.
Ferreira said that the Olympics represented peace, “so let’s not only bring world peace, but domestic peace within our country, hopefully.”
Goepper noted that “our country has been having issues for 250 years, and I’m here to uphold classic American values of respect, opportunity, and freedom, and equality — and project those to the world.”
Birk Irving said he was proud to be representing Winter Park, his home in Colorado, where he and his sister, Svea, grew up learning to ski.
Svea Irving said it was “definitely a tough time in our country right now” and that she wanted to represent “my values, which is compassion and respect and love for others, and also to represent my community at home.”
Gray said she was representing her town of Mammoth Lakes, Calif., and “what I value.”
Jacobs said: “I think it’s just really important to remember what you represent personally. Coming from our country it can mean whatever you want it to mean. I think, personally, for me, (it’s) coming from my hometown (Oak Creek, Col.), and every value that they have, and who supports me personally.”
Finally, Winterberger, a 15-year-old from Truckee, Calif., concluded: “I would say pretty much the same thing as everyone else. Just representing all the good parts, all the people in the community that brought us all here.”
On the same day Hess made his comments, Vice President J.D. Vance was greeted with a scattering of boos at San Siro stadium in Milan during the opening ceremony. He was booed again Sunday while leaving a women’s hockey game between the United States and Finland.
Italians have protested about ICE presence in their home country, while multiple U.S. Olympians have been asked about tensions back home. British skier Gus Kenworthy posted a message on Instagram of him having scrawled, “F— ice” in urine on the snow.