Organizers of Greenland’s annual national dog sled race have questioned who invited Donald Trump’s U.S. envoy to the event, saying that its presence would be “wholly inappropriate” amid ongoing tensions between the two nations.
“On January 8, 2026, KNQK [The Greenland Dog Sledding Association] received an inquiry from an American journalist stating that the US president’s recently appointed envoy, Governor Jeff Landry, had been invited to Avannaata Qimussersua,” a statement from the association’s president, Mikkel Jeremiassen, read.
“The KNQK Board finds it unacceptable that political pressure is being exerted from outside and therefore considers the participation of foreign political actors in Avannaata Qimussersua to be wholly inappropriate.”
Jeremiassen added that the association’s board was currently working closely with patrons to determine who sent the invitations to “foreign actors,” adding that “once this investigation is complete, the board will provide further information.”
Avannaata Qimussersua is Greenland’s annual national sled dog race and brings together approximately 37 mushers and their 444 dogs from across the country.
Though the location and distance change every year, the race is always held in west Greenland above the Arctic Circle. Strict rules mean that only Greenland dogs may enter the race, as other breeds are restricted from entering the country north of the Circle.
The blocking of Landry and others comes as tensions continue to flare between the U.S., Greenland and Denmark.
Denmark controls Greenland through its status as an autonomous territory.
Trump has been adamant that he needs U.S. control over Greenland “right now” and claims it is vital for America’s “national security”, though the comments have caused alarm in NATO countries.
As a result, Denmark’s foreign minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Vivian Moltzfeldt requested a meeting with U.S. secretary of state Marco Rubio – which vice president JD Vance has now requested to join and will host in Washington D.C. at a date yet to be specified.
The vice president and his wife Usha were scheduled to attend the Avannaata Qimussersua last year during a visit to Greenland, though changed their itinerary following angry protests from residents.
The couple, who were accompanied by then-national security adviser Mike Waltz and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, were ultimately kept away from the more populated areas of the island in an attempt to reduce the likelihood that they would encounter demonstrators.
Vance’s inclusion in the talks with Rubio, Rasmussen and Moltzfeldt could prove controversial given his vocal support for the U.S. seizing the territory from Denmark.
Last week, he warned Europe that they needed to take Trump “seriously” on his aspiration to acquire it. “What we’re asking our European friends to do is to take the security of that land mass more seriously, because if they’re not, the United States is going to have to do something about it,” he said.
“What that is, I’ll leave that to the president as we continue to engage in diplomacy with our European friends and everybody on this particular topic.”
Greenland holds a large and untapped wealth of natural resources, including oil and gas as well as natural earth minerals, zinc, copper, nickel and graphite. Its geographical location, positioned between the North American Arctic and Europe, also makes it appealing to Trump for strategic reasons.
The president has had his eyes on the territory since 2019, when he first publicly floated the idea of purchasing it.
