One of the more vocal critics of President Trump at the Olympics wrapped up his time in Italy at the bottom of the leader board.
Team USA skier Hunter Hess has been on the receiving end of criticism ever since he spoke out against the Trump Administration.
After qualifying for the men’s freestyle skiing halfpipe final, Hess did not perform to a high standard – finishing 10th out of the 11 riders on the day.
His first run ended with a low score of 27.25 after some poor execution led to him bobbling the landing and falling in the snow.
Run No. 2 didn’t lead to any improvement as Hess fell down again and completely lost his right ski – giving him only one more chance to try and move his way up for a medal.
But on his final attempt, Hess only scored a 58.75 – finishing second-to-last in the event.
American Olympic skier Hunter Hess finished just 10th out of 11 skiers in the halfpipe final
Hess drew criticism after he hit out at the Trump Administration at the games, leading to Trump branding the skier as a ‘real loser’ before he even began competing
Hess crashed in the middle of his first run, logging a score of 27.75 in a rough start
On his second run, Hess lost his ski on a landing. The third run wasn’t enough for a good finish.
Hess had been at the center of controversy throughout these Olympics after he expressed his displeasure with the Trump Administration.
In response, the President called Hess a ‘real loser’ in a post on Truth Social.
During qualifying for the halfpipe event, Hess put his hand to his forehead in an ‘L’ shape – referencing Trump’s comment.
‘Apparently I am a loser,’ he said. ‘I am leaning into it.’
After his less-than-stellar showing, there was plenty of social media blowback to add fuel to that fire.
‘Ooooh my Hunter Hess couldn’t even get a score over 60. HAHAHA KARMA BABY .. Now find another country if the USA isn’t for you. Go Woke Go Broke,’ one gloating hater wrote on X.
‘If you’re gonna get political as an athlete, you need to bring the goods. Hunter Hess did not, placing 10th in his only event,’ wrote another user.
Another comment read, ‘Hunter Hess dead last bruh. Another trash liberal.’
Hess flashed an ‘L’ sign on his head in qualifying, a reference to being called a ‘loser’ by Trump
The president ranted about his comments and sparked ‘the worst two weeks’ of Hess’ life
The result comes after Hess admitted that his time in Cortina since his comments served as the ‘hardest two weeks of my life.’
He said: ‘I worked so hard to be here. I sacrificed my entire life to make this moment happen. I’m not going to let controversy like that get in my way. I love the United States of America. I cannot say that enough.
‘In my original statement, I felt like I said that, but apparently people didn’t take it that way. I’m so happy to be here, so happy to represent Team USA and ride as much as I can.
‘It was pretty distracting. I had a week that was pretty challenging. Luckily my family was there to support me and help me get through it. There was a lot of noise and I’ve never been subject to that type of criticism.
‘But with my family’s help, I was able to get through it. And skiing has saved my life, time and time again, and it seems to have done so again.
‘It was probably the hardest two weeks of my life. I luckily had a lot of friends and family support getting through it.’
Hess added: ‘I stand with what I said. I love the United States of America. I cannot reiterate that enough. My entire family, they all live there. It means the absolute world to me to be able to represent Team USA here. I’ve worked so hard to get here. And yeah, I stick with what I said.’
