Hilary Knight Won't Let Trump's 'distasteful Joke' Overshadow U.s. Women's Olympic Success

U.S. women’s lucky prima Hilary Knight wasn’t a instrumentality of a remark that President Trump made astir her squad days aft it claimed Olympic golden astatine nan Milan-Cortina Games.

“I thought it was benignant of a distasteful joke, and unfortunately, that is overshadowing a batch of nan occurrence of conscionable women astatine nan Olympics carrying for Team USA and having astonishing golden badge feats,” Knight said Wednesday during an quality connected ESPN’s “SportsCenter.”

On Feb. 19, nan U.S. defeated Canada 2-1 successful overtime for a 3rd golden badge successful women’s hockey; nan squad won golden successful 1998 and 2018. Three days later, nan U.S. men’s lucky squad besides won golden by defeating Canada 2-1 successful overtime.

After nan men’s game, Trump addressed nan U.S. players by telephone successful nan locker room, extending an invitation for them to be his State of nan Union reside 2 days later and adding a seemingly dismissive remark astir nan women’s team.

“I must show you, we’re gonna person to bring nan women’s team, you do cognize that,” Trump said during nan call. By not inviting nan different American golden badge lucky team, nan president said, “I do judge I’d astir apt beryllium impeached.”

Trump’s remark was met pinch large laughter successful nan locker room. But Knight said she and her teammates aren’t spending overmuch clip reasoning astir nan remark.

“We’re conscionable trying to attraction connected celebrating nan women successful our room, nan bonzer efforts and proceed to observe 3 golden medals successful programme history, arsenic good arsenic nan double golden for some men’s and women’s astatine nan aforesaid clip and really not detract from that pinch a distasteful joke,” Knight, who has won 2 golden medals and 3 silvers successful 5 Olympics pinch nan U.S. team, said.

“It was unfortunate, but yeah, I deliberation really focusing connected celebrating each awesome things that person travel retired of nan Olympics and emotion nan emotion and nan support and getting backmost successful our respective communities and sharing this travel pinch them, that’s what it’s each astir and that’s what makes this infinitesimal ace special.”

The mostly of nan men’s squad met pinch Trump astatine nan White House connected Tuesday earlier being honored astatine nan State of nan Union address, wherever they received a bipartisan opinionated ovation lasting astir 2 minutes. During his address, Trump announced that goalie Connor Hellebuyck will person nan Presidential Medal of Freedom, nan nation’s highest civilian honor.

The women’s squad confirmed successful a connection Monday that it declined an invitation to be nan State of nan Union reside “due to nan timing and antecedently scheduled world and master commitments pursuing nan Games.” Trump said during nan reside that nan women’s squad would beryllium visiting nan White House “very soon.”

Amid nan contention complete Trump’s locker room comment, hip-hop fable Flavor Flav invited nan women’s lucky squad to a typical event celebrating their accomplishment successful Las Vegas. He later extended nan invitation to “ALL Female US Olympians and Paralympian medalists” for nan “She’s Got Game Weekend” from July 16-19.

“It was decidedly ace special, aft everything that’s been going astir online, to person personification measurement up for illustration that and really spell to bat for us,” guardant Alex Carpenter said of Flav’s invitation during a Seattle Torrent news convention connected Wednesday. “I deliberation we’re afloat gonna return advantage of that and spell person immoderate nosy and observe for illustration we merit to.”

U.S.men’s squad personnel Jeremy Swayman told reporters astatine Boston Bruins believe Wednesday that nan laughter heard successful nan locker room pursuing Trump’s remark does not bespeak really nan players consciousness astir nan women’s squad and its accomplishments.

“Yeah, we should person reacted differently,” Swayman said. “We are truthful excited for nan women’s team, we person truthful overmuch respect for nan women’s team, and to stock that golden badge pinch them is thing that we’re everlastingly grateful for. And now that we’re location we get to stock that together everlastingly and spot nan unthinkable support we person from nan USA and stock successful this unthinkable golden medal.”

Jack Hughes, who scored nan winning extremity for nan U.S. men against Canada, said nan men’s players were caught “in nan moment” during nan president’s telephone that came during nan mediate of their triumph celebration.

“Obviously it is what it is now, but we person truthful overmuch respect for nan women’s squad and they person truthful overmuch respect for us,” Hughes told reporters aft his New Jersey Devils’ 2-1 nonaccomplishment to nan Buffalo Sabres connected Wednesday night. “We’re each conscionable proud Americans and we’re happy that we some swept nan Olympics.”

Knight said she thinks location is “a genuine level of support and respect” betwixt nan U.S. men’s and women’s players and called nan infinitesimal a “sort of a speedy lapse” by nan men’s players.

“I deliberation nan guys were successful a reliable spot,” Knight said. “So it’s a shame that this storyline and communicative is benignant of blown up and overshadowing that relationship and genuine liking successful 1 different and cheering 1 different on.

“I deliberation this is conscionable a really bully learning constituent to really attraction on, you know, really we talk astir women, not only successful sport, but successful industry.”

Discussion astir nan telephone wasn’t nan only disapproval of nan White House from nan world of Team USA hockey.

On Thursday, men’s subordinate Brady Tkachuk said he was unhappy that nan White House shared a video connected TikTok that made it look he disparaged Canadians while utilizing profanity. The video, which besides features lucky footage and portion of an question and reply pinch Hughes, carries a statement saying it “contains AI-generated media.”

“It’s intelligibly clone because it’s not my sound and not my lips moving. … I cognize that those words would ne'er travel retired of my mouth,” Tkachuk told reporters.

He added: “I would ne'er opportunity that. That’s not who I am.”

The White House did not instantly respond to a petition for remark from nan Associated Press.

Tkachuk besides denied being nan sound heard shouting “close nan bluish border” during nan team’s telephone pinch Trump.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.