A veteran member of the U.S. Olympic curling team publicly criticized federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota, using an Olympic media session to denounce ICE activity and praise anti-enforcement protests.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A U.S. Olympic curler speaking from the international stage used his media availability this week to sharply criticize Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Minnesota, adding to a growing pattern of American athletes using Olympic events to comment on domestic political issues.
Rich Ruohonen, 54, a Minnesota native and member of the U.S. Olympic curling team, addressed reporters Tuesday and devoted a substantial portion of his remarks to opposing federal immigration enforcement efforts underway in and around Minneapolis, where ICE agents and other federal officers have been conducting operations aimed at arresting criminal illegal aliens, including individuals wanted for serious felony offenses.
“I’d like to say I’m proud to be here to represent Team USA, and to represent our country,” Ruohonen said. “But we’d be remiss if we didn’t at least mention what’s going on in Minnesota. What a tough time it’s been for everybody. This stuff is happening right around where we live,” according to video footage shared on X.
Federal operations in the Minneapolis area have drawn organized resistance from anti-ICE activists, who on multiple occasions have attempted to obstruct agents’ work, including through confrontational and, at times, violent actions. Those disruptions have been widely documented during recent enforcement efforts.
Ruohonen, who identified himself as a personal injury lawyer, framed his criticism in constitutional terms while condemning the actions of federal authorities.
“I am a lawyer, as you know. We have a constitution, and it allows us freedom of speech,” he said. “It protects us from unreasonable searches and seizures. And makes it that we have to have probable cause to be pulled over. What’s happening in Minnesota is wrong. There’s no shades of grey. It’s clear.”
He went on to voice support for demonstrators opposing ICE operations, praising what he described as public resistance to immigration enforcement.
“I really love what’s been happening there now. With people coming out, showing the love, the compassion, the integrity and respect for others that they don’t know, and helping them out,” Ruohonen said. “We love Minnesota for that.”
Despite his criticism of federal policy, Ruohonen emphasized that he and his teammates remain committed to competing under the U.S. flag.
“We love our country. We’re playing for the U.S. We’re playing for each other, we’re playing for our family and our friends that sacrificed so much to get here today,” he said.
The curler then suggested that the team’s participation carries broader symbolic meaning tied to opposition to immigration enforcement.
“What the Olympics means is excellence, respect, friendship,” Ruohonen said. “We are playing for the people of Minnesota and the people around the country who share those same values, that compassion, that love, and that respect.”
Ruohonen’s remarks come amid heightened scrutiny of political statements made by American athletes during Olympic competition, as domestic policy debates increasingly intersect with international sporting events.
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