Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Multiple US Olympic men’s ice hockey players have apologized for their team’s response after President Donald Trump joked he would “have to” invite the women’s team to the White House too. The gold-winning men’s team took a congratulatory call from Trump last weekend as they celebrated their final victory over Canada, where the president extended an invitation to Washington DC.
Locker room footage show several male athletes laughing as the president joked that he would be “impeached” if he did not also invite the US women, who also won gold, to his State of the Union address. Both Trump’s joke and the reaction have drawn intense criticism, which has overshadowed the historic triumphs, and the women’s side later declined an invitation from Trump to Tuesday’s speech, citing prior commitments.
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“Certainly sorry for how we responded to it in that moment. You know, things just happened really quick there,” Charlie McAvoy told reporters ahead of an NHL game Thursday. “If you know the relationships that we have… with the women’s team and how we’ve supported them, it’s certainly not reflective of how we feel,” said McAvoy, a defenseman for the Boston Bruins.
His US teammate Jake Sanderson told journalists the laughter had been “a bit of a mistake” that “got blown out of proportion a little bit,” while reserve goaltender Jeremy Swayman said, “We should’ve reacted differently.” Auston Matthews, the gold-winning US men’s team captain, told a press conference Wednesday that the situation resulting from Trump’s joke about the women’s team was “unfortunate.”
Some 20 players from the men’s team were feted in the Oval Office at the White House and again at Trump’s speech before a joint session of Congress. Trump gave goaltender Connor Hellebuyck the Presidential Medal of Freedom. A handful of men’s players did not attend. During his State of the Union address, Trump said the women’s team “will soon be coming to the White House.”
Hilary Knight, captain of the victorious women’s team, said it was unfortunate that a “distasteful joke” by Trump had overshadowed the achievements of US athletes at the Milan-Cortina Games. “How we speak about women matters, and we need to celebrate this team,” Knight said Thursday on “Good Morning America.”
The team has yet to determine whether to visit the White House, ESPN reported. But the women’s team are set to attend a celebratory event in Las Vegas this July hosted by rapper Flavor Flav. “If the USA Women’s Hockey Team wants a real celebration and invite… I’ll host them in Las Vegas,” the rapper had earlier written on Instagram. “Do some nice dinners and shows and good times. I’m sure I can get a hotel and airline to help me out here and celebrate these women for real for real.”
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