{"id":10015,"date":"2026-02-10T13:39:04","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T13:39:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/02\/10\/snowboarder-chloe-kim-expresses-support-for-teammate-trump-called-a-real-loser-nbc-news\/"},"modified":"2026-02-10T13:39:04","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T13:39:04","slug":"snowboarder-chloe-kim-expresses-support-for-teammate-trump-called-a-real-loser-nbc-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/02\/10\/snowboarder-chloe-kim-expresses-support-for-teammate-trump-called-a-real-loser-nbc-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Snowboarder Chloe Kim expresses support for teammate Trump called ‘a real loser’ – NBC News"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Listen to this article with a <\/span>free account<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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U.S. Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim called for unity and expressed support for fellow Team USA athlete Hunter Hess after <\/a>President Donald Trump called the freestyle skier “a real loser.”<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, my parents being immigrants, this one definitely has hit pretty close to home,\u201d Kim, a two-time gold medalist, said at a news conference Monday when she was asked about Trump\u2019s description of Hess, who earlier said he had mixed emotions about representing the U.S. in light of current of events. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn moments like these, it is really important for us to unite and kind of stand up for one another, for all that\u2019s going on,\u201d Kim said.<\/p>\n

For live Olympics coverage, follow here. <\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Kim said she\u2019s proud to represent the U.S. but added, \u201cWe are allowed to voice our opinions on what\u2019s going on, and I think that we need to lead with love and compassion, and I would love to see some more of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hess, who is scheduled to compete in the men’s freeski halfpipe competition next week, said he felt mixed emotions about representing the U.S. after he was asked for his views on Trump\u2019s immigration crackdown in Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s obviously a lot going on that I\u2019m not the biggest fan of and I think a lot of people aren\u2019t,” he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust because I\u2019m wearing the flag doesn\u2019t mean I represent everything that\u2019s going on in the U.S.,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

\"Hunter<\/picture>
Hunter Hess of the U.S. after the second run of the Aspen Snowmass men’s freeski halfpipe finals in Aspen, Colo., on Jan. 10.<\/span>Michael Reaves \/ Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Trump said on Truth Social that if Hess didn\u2019t want to represent the United States, he shouldn\u2019t have tried out for the team.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s too bad he\u2019s on it,\u201d Trump said. \u201cVery hard to root for someone like this. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hess responded Monday that while there is much is that great about the U.S., there are always things that could be better. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the many things that makes this country so amazing is that we have the right and the freedom to point that out,\u201d he said on Instagram. \u201cThe best part of the Olympics is that it brings people together, and when so many of us are divided we need that more than ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Curler Rich Ruohonen spoke out as well on Tuesday, condemning immigration sweeps in his home state of Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like to say I\u2019m proud to be here to represent Team USA, and to represent our country. But we\u2019d be remiss if we didn\u2019t at least mention what\u2019s going on in Minnesota,\u201d said Ruohonen, a 54-year-old personal injury lawyer who works in Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a tough time it\u2019s been for everybody. This stuff is happening right around where we live,\u201d he added in a statement at the end of a press conference.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a lawyer, as you know. We have a constitution, and it allows us freedom of speech,\u201d Ruohonen went on.<\/p>\n

Speaking alongside Kim on Monday, fellow Team USA snowboarders offered similar comments, with Maddie Mastro saying that she\u2019s proud to represent the U.S. but that \u201cwe come together at times of injustice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Separately, freestyle skier and two-time gold medalist Eileen Gu also expressed support for Hess, saying she had so much \u201csympathy and empathy\u201d for him, Reuters reported<\/a>, but she added that the focus should remain on his skiing.<\/p>\n

Gu was born in the United States but has represented China in 2022 and 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe whole point of sport is to bring people together,\u201d she said, according to The New York Times<\/a>. “One of the very few common languages, that of the human body, that of the human spirit, the competitive spirit, the capacity to break not only records, but especially in our sport, literally the human limit. How wonderful is that?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Tim Stelloh is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Listen to this article with a free account U.S. Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim called for unity and expressed support for fellow Team USA athlete Hunter Hess after President Donald Trump called the freestyle skier “a real loser.” \u201cObviously, my parents being immigrants, this one definitely has hit pretty close to home,\u201d Kim, a two-time gold […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10016,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10015","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10015","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10015"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10015\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10016"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}