Lindsey Vonn is one of the most heralded Alpine skiers of all time, and for good reason: Her 77 World Cup victories are the most-ever by a woman, and Ingemar Stenmark's all-time record of 86 is within reach. But for all her success, she only has two Olympic medals, a tally she would like to grow this winter at the Pyeongchang Olympics.
And if she does, don't expect her to celebrate with President Donald Trump at the White House.
"I hope to represent the people of the United States, not the president," she told CNN. "I take the Olympics very seriously and what they mean and what they represent, what walking under our flag means in the Opening Ceremonies. And, you know, I want to represent our country well and I don't think there are a lot of people currently in our government that do that."
When asked by CNN's Christina Macfarlane if she would accept an invitation to the White House should she win an Olympic medal, Vonn replied: "Absolutely not. Nope. But I have to win to be invited so - no, actually I think every U.S. team member is invited. So no, I won't go."
In September, Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry doubled down on his stance that he would not be celebrating his team's NBA title with Trump at the White House. Trump responded by saying that Curry's invitation had been "withdrawn," and the Warriors as a team later voted against visiting the White House altogether. Since Trump took office in January, members of championship-winning teams including the New England Patriots, Chicago Cubs and Clemson Tigers have visited him at the White House, while the Warriors, NCAA men's basketball champion North Carolina and NCAA women's champion South Carolina have said they would not be making the trip.
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Vonn has visited the White House in the past, once in 2010 (according to a Facebook post) and another time in 2014 with then-boyfriend Tiger Woods to celebrate the winning 2013 U.S. Presidents Cup team.
Story by Matt Bonesteel. After spending the first 17 years of his Post career writing and editing, Matt and the printed paper had an amicable divorce in 2014. He's now blogging and editing for the Early Lead and The Post's other Web-based products.
