Meanwhile, the crowd greeted Team U.S.A. with a round of applause
Alexander NEMENOV/AFP via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Vice President JD Vance and second lady, Usha Vance, attended the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics opening ceremony on behalf of President Donald Trump
- At the Friday, Feb. 6, event, the couple was met with boos from the crowd
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Tilman Fertitta, the U.S. ambassador to Italy, also attended the opening ceremony
Vice President JD Vance was booed at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics opening ceremony on Friday, Feb. 6, at San Siro Stadium.
The Jumbotron showed the vice president and the second lady, Usha, as the crowd reacted to their presence. The pair was met with boos and whistles from the crowd. The crowd's reaction shifted to applause as Team U.S.A. was featured on the Jumbotron seconds later.
Vance, 41, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Tilman Fertitta, the U.S. ambassador to Italy, are representing the U.S. on behalf of President Donald Trump at the international games.
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The reaction to Vance comes amid growing political tensions in the U.S., and the international reaction to the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
A week before the Olympics, “sources at the U.S. Embassy in Rome” said that ICE agents would have a security role alongside other U.S. agencies present at the games, the Associated Press reported.
However, on Jan. 27, Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala made it clear the ICE officers “are not welcome in Milan, without a doubt,” according to the BBC. Additionally, on Jan. 31, hundreds of protesters demanded that ICE agents leave Italy. The protests continued on Friday, Feb. 6, ahead of the opening ceremony.
Chief of Security and Athlete Services for the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), Nicole Deal said on Thursday, Feb 5: "I can tell you unequivocally that there are no ICE agents that are part of the Team USA delegation on the ground here in Milan,” the Independent reported.
Sending agents from various federal agencies to bolster security for diplomats on the ground at the Olympics is not unusual, according to the AP. According to the news service, the U.S. previously sent agents from the Transportation Security Administration to the 2016 Summer Olympics.
AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko
The international protests follow the shooting deaths of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti, a local Minneapolis ICU nurse, and Renee Good, a mother of three, in Minneapolis.
Amid the ongoing political tension, Vance has reiterated that he was "proud" of how the Trump administration was conducting the ongoing immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.
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To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, come to people.com to check out ongoing coverage before, during and after the games. Watch the Milan Cortina Olympics and Paralympics, beginning Feb. 6, on NBC and Peacock.
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