IOC president Kirsty Coventry urges spectators to be “respectful” towards US athletes as backlash grows over ICE

The president largely swerved political questions at a pre-Winter Olympics press conference and suggested athletes’ respect for one another ‘put into perspective what we could be’

IOC president Kirsty Coventry (right) called on fans to be “respectful” at Winter Olympics (via REUTERS)

IOC president Kirsty Coventry urged spectators at Friday’s Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony to be “respectful” amid a fractious political backdrop to the Games.

The news that US immigration agency ICE would be in operation in Milano-Cortina was met with widespread backlash after agents killed American citizen Renee Good in Minneapolis in January.

Milan’s mayor, Beppe Sala, was among those to condemn the agency, describing it as “a militia that kills”.

Coventry studiously avoided political topics at a press conference following the IOC Session on Wednesday and attempted to turn attention to sport’s ability to be a force for good.

Asked what her message would be to those tempted to boo American athletes at Friday’s ceremony, she said: “I hope that the opening ceremony is seen by everyone as an opportunity to be respectful. When we went to the [athletes’] village, that is just the best reminder of how we all should be, because you see athletes from every walk of life.

"No-one’s asking what country they come from, what religion, they’re all just hanging out, and it was so cool to see, and a real opportunity to put into perspective what we could be. I hope the Opening Ceremony will be a reminder of what we could be."

Coventry, a former Olympian, also dodged the hot topic of gender eligibility in sports.

A verdict on the eligibility of transgender athletes had been expected at the session, with the Milano-Cortina Games set to begin on Friday, but no new regulations have been announced.

Coventry would not be drawn into political questions during an IOC press conference ahead of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony (Getty Images)

Coventry also said that the IOC would not intervene as debate swirls over the suitability of Casey Wasserman to remain LA 2028 Olympics chief after revelations of his communications with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell were revealed.

“As we said before, Casey put out a statement,” she said. “From the IOC point of view, the [LA organising committee] and how it is structured is not something that we will be involved in."

The pre-Games build-up was also rocked by the announcement from the Italian foreign ministry that it had thwarted a series of cyber-attacks targeting the Olympics, but IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said the body would not comment on such issues, and Coventry added that she didn’t have “any information” on the incident.