Sport

Team USA’s Charlie McAvoy apologises over Trump call after winning Olympic gold

David Benjamin
A gold medal-winning member of Team USA’s Winter Olympics ice hockey team has apologised for how they ‘responded’ during a phone call with President Donald Trump in the aftermath of the victory. The American men’s side secured a thrilling 2-1 overtime win over Canada at Milano Cortina 2026, ending a 46-year Olympic gold medal drought for the men’s team since 1980’s Miracle on Ice. As they celebrated the win over their bitter hockey rivals, Trump was put on speakerphone in the locker room as he passed on his congratulations, before being heavily criticised over one remark. (Picture: Getty Images)
The president heaped praise on the team and invited the squad to be guests of honour at his State of the Union address at the United States Capitol in Washington D.C., which took place on Tuesday. He then made reference to the US women’s team, who had achieved the same feat, also beating Canada by the same scoreline to win gold 48 hours earlier. (Picture: Getty Images)
‘I must tell you, we’re going to have to bring the women’s team [to the State of the Union address]… you do know that?’ Trump said. ‘I do believe I probably would be impeached.’ The comment was met with laughter from players surrounding the phone. Both the comment and reaction were widely criticised, with Hilary Knight, the captain of the US women’s ice hockey team, branding it ‘distasteful’. The women’s team did not attend The White House earlier this week, but said it was due to ‘previously scheduled academic and professional commitments’. Charlie McAvoy, a member of the men’s team, has now apologised for the incident. (Picture: Getty Images)
The Boston Bruins defenseman said: ‘Yeah I think, you know, just certainly sorry for how we responded to it in that moment. You know things that just happened really quick there. And if you know the men’s team and if you know the relationships that we have, the amount of time that we’ve spent, you know, with the women’s team and how we’ve supported them, it’s certainly not reflective of how we feel and look at them and their accomplishments.’ (Picture: Getty Images)
‘What they did was unbelievable.’ He added: ‘We made friends for life with them. We supported them the same way they supported us. We share this together, I know that and I’m pretty confident they know how I feel about them and what they’ve been able to accomplish. The way they did it too, with how dominant they played. America should be so proud of them.’ (Picture: Getty Images)
Fellow Bruins star Jeremy Swayman also addressed the backlash, saying on Wednesday: ‘We should have reacted differently. We know that we are so excited for the women’s team, we have so much respect for the women’s team. To share that gold medal with them is something that we’re forever grateful for.’ McAvoy and Swayman attended The White House and State of the Union at Trump’s invitation, while five members of the men’s team did not make the trip. (Picture: Getty Images)
Brock Nelson, Jackson LaCombe, Jake Oettinger, Jake Guentzel and Kyle Connor did not attend, with all of them saying it was down to family and professional commitments. Guentzel said he was preparing to resume NHL games and clarified that he ‘was definitely not denying the request to go’ while LaCombe shared similar reasoning, reportedly saying: ‘I love our country. I love whoever’s in office, so it was such an honor, but I just wanted to be back here for the game, and it was a tight window, so I couldn’t really make it work.’ (Picture: Getty Images)

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