{"id":2934,"date":"2026-08-12T00:33:37","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T00:33:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/?p=2934"},"modified":"2026-08-12T00:33:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T00:33:37","slug":"donald-trump-gets-snubbed-by-team-usa-winter-olympics-heroes-at-tense-white-house-celebration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/?p=2934","title":{"rendered":"Donald Trump Gets Snubbed By Team USA Winter Olympics Heroes At Tense White House Celebration"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-excerpt entry-excerpt-single\">\n<p>Winter Olympians noticeably skip Donald Trump\u2019s White House celebration.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-background has-no-content-width has-lg-margin-bottom\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div class=\"pw-leaderboard\">\n<div id=\"underExcerpt\" data-pw-desk=\"leaderboard_btf\" data-pw-mobi=\"leaderboard_btf\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"underExcerpt\" data-pw-desk=\"leaderboard_btf\" data-pw-mobi=\"leaderboard_btf\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content entry-content-single\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thursday was a big day for Donald Trump and the White House.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump hosted more than 120 athletes, coaches, and staff from Team USA at the White House on Thursday. The reception honored American competitors for their historic performance at the 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Italy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dozens of athletes across sports like figure skating, curling, luge, bobsledding, snowboarding, and alpine skiing filled the East Room. However, not everything went according to plan.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-a-tense-white-house-celebration-for-donald-trump\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Tense White House Celebration For Donald Trump<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-2935\" src=\"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/donald-trump-1-1-768x422-1-300x165.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"165\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/donald-trump-1-1-768x422-1-300x165.jpg 300w, https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/donald-trump-1-1-768x422-1.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Donald Trump. Credit: Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The political world is colliding with sports once again. Over the past few months, Trump has had quite a few run-ins with sports stars or with sports overall.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-md-margin-top has-md-margin-bottom\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump\u00a0hosted a special reception\u00a0in the East Room to celebrate Team USA\u2019s incredible winter sports heroes. Nearly half of the qualifying American competitors traveled to Washington to participate in the formal event. Therefore, a substantial crowd filled the risers to meet the commander-in-chief.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-no-content-width has-xs-padding-bottom\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div id=\"incontent-ad-2\" class=\"pw-incontent\" data-label=\"Advertisement\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered\"><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" class=\"\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=reddawg77089&amp;dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=2085509702813712803&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.totalprosports.com%2Folympics%2Fdonald-trump-snubbed-winter-olympics-heroes-white-house-reception%2F&amp;sessionId=37a25530aadf5bc494f1185433fb50fe04e897fa&amp;siteScreenName=totalprosports&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-tweet-id=\"2085509702813712803\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the blatant absence of certain notable athletic figures quickly became the primary talking point of the entire afternoon. Specifically, 27-year-old freestyle skier Hunter Hess was absent from the audience after previously expressing mixed feelings about the administration.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-why-olympic-stars-noticeably-snubbed-trump\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why Olympic Stars Noticeably Snubbed Trump<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-2603390\" src=\"https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-1024x563.jpg\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-150x82.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-595x327.jpg 595w, https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-768x422.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-1024x563.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-1536x844.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.totalprosports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/donald-trump-2-2048x1126.jpg 2048w\" alt=\"Donald Trump during the FIFA World Cup final.\" width=\"1024\" height=\"563\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Donald Trump. Credit: Julian Leshay Guadalupe\/NorthJersey.com \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ongoing friction between these elite athletes and the executive branch is not entirely new. Previously, Donald Trump publicly labeled\u00a0Hess a \u201creal loser\u201d\u00a0following critical comments made during the global tournament. To counter the insult, Hess successfully launched a popular apparel brand using that exact phrase to fund youth sports initiatives. Hess, who hails from Bend, Oregon, said during a press availability that\u00a0<strong><em>\u201cjust because I\u2019m wearing the flag doesn\u2019t mean I represent everything that\u2019s going on in the US.\u201d<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0His comments came weeks after\u00a0two deadly incidents involving federal officers\u00a0in Minneapolis.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Furthermore, ice dancers Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik released a video on social media stating their refusal to attend.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-no-content-width has-xs-padding-bottom\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<div id=\"incontent-ad-4\" class=\"pw-incontent\" data-label=\"Advertisement\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While some decorated champions like Jordan Stolz happily gifted the president custom Team USA gear, the undercurrent of athletic resistance remained highly visible.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Donald Trump has yet to comment on Hess\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Winter Olympians noticeably skip Donald Trump\u2019s White House celebration. Thursday was a big day for Donald Trump and the White House. Trump hosted more than 120 athletes, coaches, and staff &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2,21,20],"class_list":["post-2934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-trending","tag-breaking-news","tag-donald-trump","tag-donaldtrump"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2934"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2934\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2936,"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2934\/revisions\/2936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thejoeroganpod.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}