The International Olympic Committee has not yet established formal communication with US President Donald Trump about preparations for the Los Angeles Games in 2028, IOC President Kirsty Coventry has confirmed.
Trump has spoken at Davos in Switzerland after a turbulent start to 2026 in which he has suggested he will invade Greenland, threatened a trade war with Europe and ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Coventry confirmed she had no plans to meet Trump amid rising global tensions ahead of the 2028 Olympics, expected to bring together more than 10,000 athletes from more than 200 countries, and said she did not want to get involved in geopolitics.
“We are always aware of all the conversations that are happening and the geopolitical and political conversations that are happening,” Coventry said on Wednesday. “I would like to make it clear that it is not our role to comment on such matters. Our goal is to have all national Olympic committees represented at the Games.”
However, Coventry expects to meet with US Vice President JD Vance before the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics on February 6.
“As far as the US is concerned, we have not yet had any formal communication with the White House,” she added. “We have seen the formal announcement from President Trump’s team. We look forward to meeting with the vice president.”
But at a press conference in Lausanne, Coventry did emphasize Olympic values and spoke of countries coming together in harmony – in what sounded like a silent rebuke to the US government.
“We will work extremely hard to protect the Olympic Games and the Olympic Games platform,” she said. “Because it shows how we can live and a way to understand each other. You don’t have to speak the same language to understand what each other is trying to achieve, or to have appreciation for each other. And to me, especially in today’s world, these are values that we need to make sure we protect.”
The US is also co-hosting this year’s World Cup, with FIFA president Gianni Infantino meeting Trump repeatedly at the White House and controversially awarding him a peace prize in December.
Asked if she could learn from Infantino’s approach, Coventry said: “If we didn’t see good relations six months before the World Cup, I would be concerned. As we get closer to the Olympics you’ll see the relationships continue… and only get stronger.”
Meanwhile, Olympic Games director Christophe Dubi admitted that there is still some work to be done on the slide in Cortina, but also on the hall and temporary work in the ice hockey arena. However, he insisted that all venues for the Winter Olympics would be ready in time.
“With the sliding, we can’t deny that there is work to be done,” Dubi said. “For hockey, the works in the hall and the temporary works, which are last-minute by nature, will be completed in a few days. But they are still working. There is a lot of confidence and workers on site. So we will be ready to receive the best athletes.”
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