At the Winter Olympics, Team USA Can’t Escape the Politics at Home

The 232 Americans competing at the Winter Games have trained for years, traveled thousands of miles and were ready to give their best on the ice and the slopes. Politics, however, has intruded on their Olympic moment. The competition opened after a year in which the Trump administration denigrated Europe, threatened allies and launched a trade war, and opposition to those policies has followed the U.S.

team to northern Italy. Jeers and boos rippled through San Siro during the opening ceremony when Vice President JD Vance briefly appeared on the stadium screens as the U.S. delegation paraded in. Phillip DiGuglielmo, who coaches Alysa Liu, said, "It was supposed to be the pinnacle of my life to see my athlete walk into the stadium, but it turned into a really sad moment for me," and worried some athletes may have heard the jeers.

Zach Werenski, who had met Mr. Vance earlier in the day, said he saw news of the boos only later on social media and that he tries to "block all that out." News that U.S.

Italy, San Siro

winter olympics, team usa, jd vance, opening ceremony, jeers, san siro, alysa liu, phillip diguglielmo, zach werenski, northern italy