Trump creates task force ahead of 2028 Olympics games

Trump creates task force ahead of 2028 Olympics games
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) established a task force on the 2028 Olympic Games being held in Los Angeles that he said would ensure the event is “safe, seamless and historically successful.”
The 2028 Games will be the first Olympics to be hosted by the US since the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. Setting up the task force reflects the intense planning that comes with hosting the Olympics, as well as Trump’s desire to be involved in an event he considers one of the highlights of his term.
“The LA Olympics is shaping up to be a wonderful moment for America. It’s going to be incredible. It’s so exciting,” Trump said as he signed an executive order at the White House establishing the task force.
The executive order directs the task force to oversee security and planning for the Games, expedite visa processing, and coordinate credentialing for athletes, coaches, media, and other international visitors to the US.
Trump said that “we’ll do anything necessary to keep the Olympics safe,” adding that could potentially include deploying “our National Guard or military.”
Trump will lead the task force as chair, with Vice President JD Vance serving as vice chair. The group also includes several Cabinet members and senior administration officials, such as Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, who joined Trump at Tuesday’s event.
Also in attendance were Olympic gold medalist Nastia Liukin and Paralympic swimmer Brad Snyder, who competed in the 2012 Games.
Trump commended Gene Sykes, chair of the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee board, for the organization’s decision to effectively prohibit transgender women from competing in women’s sports. “The United States will not let men steal trophies from women at the 2028 Olympics,” Trump said.
He questioned why he didn’t hear applause from the room when he praised Sykes for it, and then received some claps from some people in the room.
Trump “considers it a great honor to oversee this global sporting spectacle,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement, calling sports one of the president’s “greatest passions.” During the signing event, LA28 president and chair Casey Wasserman presented Trump with a set of gold, silver and bronze medals from the 1984 Olympic Games, which were held in Los Angeles.
“Can I say I won them athletically?” Trump asked, as he displayed the medals to an audience of reporters.
Wasserman said the task force “marks an important step forward in our planning efforts and reflects our shared commitment to delivering not just the biggest, but the greatest Games the world has ever seen in the summer of 2028.”
Along with the 2028 Summer Games, Trump has said that the 2026 FIFA World Cup being hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico is among the events he’s most looking forward to in his second term.
In preparation for FIFA 2026, the governments of all three countries on Tuesday said they had held the first meeting of a trilateral coordinating council of government officials, industry leaders and security professionals discussing a variety of issues including preparedness for any security threats ahead of the World Cup.
– Ends
With inputs from Associated Press
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