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By Dan Gooding and Gabe Whisnant
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Vice President JD Vance was booed during the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics on Friday in Italy.
As the camera showed Vance and his wife, Usha, the crowd could be heard booing and whistling, mixed with applause.
In the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) feed, broadcaster Adrienne Arsenault said, "Oop...those are a lot of boos for him ...whistling, jeering, some applause. Not a long shot for him on the screen there."
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Athletes from the United States were met with applause when they appeared.
Why It Matters
Vance is in Italy as the leading representative of the Trump administration for the opening of the Winter Olympics, at a time when diplomatic relations between the U.S. and some key allies are strained.
The vice president is on a weeklong visit which is combining Olympic events and meetings with world leaders, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
What To Know
The Vances were pictured waving American flags as Team USA arrived during the opening ceremony in Milan on Friday, a few hours after he met with Meloni. The meeting mostly took place behind closed doors, with the press getting access for a few minutes.
The prime minister said they'd discussed several topics of bilateral cooperation. She also mentioned meeting at the Olympics, which she called “events that tell about values that keep together Italy and the U.S.” and “western civilization.”
Vance's office said in a statement that during the meeting with the prime minster, she and Vance discussed the strength of bilateral relations between the nations, the Olympics and mutual efforts to improve the business and investment climate.
While Meloni has a close relationship with President Donald Trump, she has sided with top U.S. allies in Europe recently over his bid to take over Greenland.
While ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Europe may have been behind the boos heard when Vance was seen on big screens in the stadium Friday night, there were also boos heard as Israel's four representatives arrived. There had been calls for the Middle Eastern nation to be banned from the event over the war in Gaza.
The loudest greeting was reserved for host Italy, whose athletes walked in to an electronic version of “The Barber of Seville."
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What People Are Saying
Vice President JD Vance, speaking to Meloni Friday: “In the spirit of the Olympics friendship, competition — competition based on rules — and just coming together around shared values, we’re very, very thrilled to be here, and we’ll have a great conversation about number of topics."
Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry, speaking earlier in the week: “I hope the opening ceremony is seen by everyone as an opportunity to be respectful."
What Happens Next
The Milano Cortina Games 2026 will see almost 3,000 athletes from 90 countries compete for a total of 116 medals over the next two weeks.
This article contains reporting by The Associated Press.
Update 2/6/26, 5:27 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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