Team GB freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy will face no sanction from Olympic authorities after sharing a provocative photograph appearing to show an expletive-laden message about US immigration enforcement urinated into snow.
The International Olympic Committee confirmed this evening that the Chelmsford-born athlete would escape punishment for the Instagram post, which emerged just days before competition begins in Milan and Cortina.
An IOC spokesperson told the Press Association: “During the Olympic Games, all participants have the opportunity to express their views as per the athlete expression guidelines. The IOC does not regulate personal social media posts.”
The 34-year-old is set to compete in the free-ski half-pipe event.
Team GB freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy will face no punishment from Olympic authorities after sharing a provocative image on social media showing “F*** ICE” written in yellow snow | GETTY
Kenworthy’s image depicted the words “f*** ICE” scrawled in snow, constituting a direct assault on the controversial US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
Accompanying the photograph, the athlete urged American citizens to lobby their senators against continued funding for the organisation.
“Innocent people have been murdered, and enough is enough,” Kenworthy wrote. “We can’t wait around while ICE continues to operate with unchecked power in our communities.”
He further demanded that politicians establish “real guardrails and accountability”, calling for limits on warrantless arrests and enforcement activities at sensitive locations including schools and hospitals.
Gus Kenworthy posted a picture of his message in the snow | INSTAGRAM
The post arrived amid heightened tensions following ICE-related deaths in Minnesota.
British Olympic Association officials are similarly untroubled by the incident, according to reports.
Their relaxed stance stems from two key factors: the post made no mention of Team GB, and it was published before Kenworthy entered the Olympic environment.
Though born in Essex, Kenworthy relocated to Colorado at the age of two and spent most of his life stateside.
He represented the United States at Sochi 2014, claiming silver in ski slopestyle alongside five X Games medals.
The athlete switched his allegiance to Great Britain in 2019, subsequently appearing for Team GB at the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022.
Team GB freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy was born in Essex but relocated to Colorado
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REUTERS
The presence of ICE agents in Milan as part of Vice President JD Vance’s security detail has sparked considerable controversy in the Italian city.
Both Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio attended Friday evening’s opening ceremony at San Siro stadium, having watched the American ice hockey team’s first match the previous day.
The Winter Olympics gets underway this month | REUTERS
Reports of ICE personnel accompanying the wider US delegation prompted protests in the build-up to the Games, with the Italian foreign office expressing displeasure.
Kenworthy’s qualifying round in the men’s snowboard halfpipe is scheduled to commence on 19 February in Livigno.
