Donald Trump is reportedly planning to fly into Milan to watch the U.S. men’s hockey team play in a potential Winter Olympics final.
According to reports in Italy, Trump will be in the stands for the gold medal game on Sunday if the U.S get there.
The Americans are huge favorites to win the gold medal but must first win their next two games to have a chance of playing in the final.
The report claims local police have already started to put security plans in place for the president’s potential arrival.
Trump’s visit will be fleeting and it’s claimed he would go straight from Air Force One to the hockey arena and then make an appearance at Sunday’s closing ceremony. He would then immediately depart Italy without an overnight stay or any meetings.
It comes after JD Vance was embarrassingly booed during the opening ceremony earlier this month.
Donald Trump is reportedly planning to fly into Milan to watch the U.S. men’s hockey team
The Americans are favorites to win the gold medal but have a quarter final to play Wednesday
Vance, who attended ice hockey and figure skating events in Milan, was clearly jeered and whistled when he and his wife, Usha, were displayed on screens as U.S. athletes joined the ceremony parade. The athletes had been cheered moments earlier.
Secretary of state Marco Rubio was among Vance’s delegation.
Protests in Milan’s streets flared up after it was confirmed 10 days before the games opened that staff from ICE, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement department, were involved in American security planning for the Olympics.
The investigations unit within ICE involved in the Olympics is separate from the enforcement unit at the forefront of the immigration crackdown in the U.S.
Trump’s potential appearance in Milan comes after a number of American athletes have hit out at his presidency during the Winter Olympics.
Last week, Vance told athletes to stick to sport and not ‘pop off about politics’ after multiple US athletes in Italy spoke out.
Team USA freestyle skiers Hunter Hess and Chris Lillis, as well as the ice skater Amber Glenn and curler Rich Ruohonen, have all spoken out about escalating issues in the US during the past fortnight.
Vance said: ‘Yes, you’re going to have some Olympic athletes who pop off about politics. I feel like that happens every Olympics.
JD Vance and his wife Usha Vance were jeered during the opening ceremony on February 6
‘My advice to them would be to try to bring the country together, and when you’re representing the country, you’re representing Democrats and Republicans.
‘You’re there to play a sport, and you’re there to represent your country and hopefully win a medal. You’re not there to pop off about politics.’
He added: ‘When Olympic athletes enter the political arena, they should expect some pushback.
‘But most Olympic athletes, whatever their politics, are doing a great job, certainly enjoy the support of the entire country, and I think recognize that 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 to represent the country well.’
Trump responded to Hess’s comment by calling the Olympic athlete a ‘real loser’ who shouldn’t have ‘tried out for the team’ if he didn’t want to represent the USA.
‘Very hard to root for someone like this,’ he posted to Truth Social.
The comments came after recent violent clashes in Minneapolis between immigration enforcement agents and anti-ICE protesters that resulted in the deaths of two Americans last month.
Conservative figures were furious over the backlash, with Trump official Ric Grenell telling Hess he should ‘move to Canada if you aren’t proud to wear USA.’
Women’s hockey Olympic athlete Kelly Pannek, who is from Minnesota, criticized ICE raids that led to the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti and said she is most proud to represent Americans ‘who brave the coldest days to advocate for their beliefs.’
Freestyle skier Hunter Hess of Oregon was the most outspoken in his criticism of Trump
Women’s hockey player Kelly Pannek, who is from Minnesota, criticized Trump-era ICE raids
And Lillis said he wouldn’t want to represent any other country, but admitted being ‘heartbroken’ over Trump-era immigration enforcement operations.
‘Athletes are hesitant to talk about political views and how we feel about things,’ Lillis said at a press conference.
‘I hope that when people look at athletes compete (sic) in the Olympics, they realize that that’s the America we’re trying to represent.’
Other athletes were a bit less direct in their criticism of the president and his policies, and were more cryptic in their perceivably anti-Trump messaging.
Cross-country skier Jessie Diggins said in an Instagram post she does ‘not stand for hate or violence or discrimination’ and is racing for Americans who stand ‘for love, for acceptance, for compassion, honesty and respect for others.’
Glenn, a three-time US champion figure skater, said that under an administration demanding athletes ‘just be quiet’ and ‘stick to sports,’ she will continue to speak out about challenges the LGBTQ community faces.
At a pre-Olympic press conference, she said: ‘It isn’t the first time that we’ve had to come together as a community and try and fight for our human rights.’
