Chinese Olympic star Eileen Gu condemned President Trump’s harsh criticism of American skier Hunter Hess after he expressed “mixed emotions” about representing the US at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina.
Gu, 22, who was born in the US but is competing for her mother’s native China, said she was disappointed that the latest buzz surrounding the Olympics was about Trump’s comments — rather than about sports uniting the world.
“I’m sorry that the headline that is eclipsing the Olympics has to be something so — unrelated to the spirit of the Games,” the two-time gold medalist told The Athletic.
“It really runs contrary to everything the Olympics should be.”
Gu, who secured her second career silver medal in Milan, said she empathized with Hess because she is no stranger to scrutiny from her fellow Americans.
The young athlete sparked major backlash at just 15 years old when she opted to leave behind the US Ski & Snowboarding team to represent China, where she competed for the home team in the 2022 Beijing Games.
Gu defended her decision to ditch the Stars as Stripes as a way to promote freestyle skiing in the Communist nation — which does not have a rich history of competing in winter sports. During the Beijing games, Gu became the youngest Olympic champion in freestyle skiing history.
“As someone who has got caught in the crossfire before, I feel sorry for the athletes,” Gu said. “I hope that they can ski to their very best.”
Along with Gu, US snowboarder Chloe Kim, 25, also came to Hess’s defense, saying that while she was proud to represent the US, she backed any fellow American’s right to voice their opinions.
“It’s important in moments like these for us to unite and kind of stand up for one another with what’s going on,” Kim, a double gold medalist and eight time X Games champion, told the Times.
“I’m really proud to represent the United States. The U.S. has given my family so much opportunity, but I also think we are allowed to voice our opinions on what’s going on,” she added.
“Obviously, my parents being immigrants, this one hits pretty close to home.”
The star athletes came to Hess’s defense after the free ski Olympian said he disagreed with “a lot” of the things happening in America, with other athletes specifically naming Trump’s immigration enforcement policy.
Trump, however, directed his full ire at the 27-year-old skier, calling Hess “a real loser” on Truth Social 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. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote.
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