Amber Glenn has never shied away from speaking her mind, even though her comments had previously drawn a wave of social media backlash. She didn’t hesitate today either. After taking home a gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics as part of USA’s figure skating team, some would have expected her to show up in Washington DC as U.S athletes are typically invited by Donald Trump to the White House to celebrate their achievements. However, it seems Glenn won’t be there anytime soon.

On March 5, Amber Glenn was on the red carpet at the 37th annual GLAAD Media Awards in Beverly Hills, where she spoke to Us Weekly about Olympians declining Trump’s invite to the White House.

“I’m electing not to either, so I do not blame them whatsoever,” Glenn said. “It is our right to be able to choose what we do and don’t endorse, and I think it is a decision that each individual has the right to make.”

It’s worth noting that, as of now, U.S. Figure Skating said there had not been a formal invitation issued yet for any member of the Olympic figure skating squad to visit the White House. But in future, if one comes along, it now looks like Glenn would likely skip it.

Interestingly, Glenn’s comment came after she faced a lot of backlash for speaking out her mind.

Well, during a pre Olympic press conference, Amber Glenn was asked about representing the LGBTQ+ community and how that felt given the broader political climate in the U.S. Glenn, who identifies as queer, spoke out about the difficulties the community had been facing.

She said it had been “a hard time for the community overall in this administration,” and hoped that her platform might inspire others to remain strong in trying times. Following that press conference response, Glenn received criticism and threats.

In an Instagram post, Glenn revealed, “When I chose to utilize one of the amazing things about the United States of America – freedom of speech – to convey how I feel as an athlete competing for Team USA in a troubling time for many Americans, I am now receiving a scary amount of hate/threats for simply using my voice.”

Glenn was then forced to take a break from social media amid the backlash. But even with the criticism, Glenn said the support she received outweighed the negativity. “There’s been so much more love, and the amount of support and encouragement that I’ve received outweighs the hate immensely,” she said. 

And now, with the White House invitation controversy, she joins other athletes who have publicly declined such visits.

Before Amber Glenn, U.S. Women’s Hockey team declined the invite

Glenn wouldn’t be the first athlete to turn down a potential White House invitation, neither this year nor in the past. After the 2018 Winter Olympics, athletes like Adam Rippon and Gus Kenworthy had also confirmed that they would not attend a White House visit.

This year, after the 2026 Winter Games, the U.S. Women’s Olympic Hockey Team won gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and was invited by President Donald Trump to attend his State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. after their victory. However, the team declined the invitation.

This came after a phone call Trump made to the men’s hockey team celebrating their gold. During that call, Trump joked:

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“I must tell you, we’re gonna have to bring the women’s team you do know that. I do believe I probably would be impeached if I didn’t.”

And the men’s team laughed at the comment, but the moment immediately drew attention online and in the media, with many questioning how the women’s accomplishments were being acknowledged.

Soon after the women’s hockey team officially declined the invitation, but their reason was different, “We are sincerely grateful for the invitation extended to our gold medal‑winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team and deeply appreciate the recognition of their extraordinary achievement. Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate.”

Beyond this statement, the captain of the team Hilary Knight later talked about the case on ESPN SportsCenter. She called the joke concerning the invitation as “distasteful and unfortunate”, and she only made it clear that the achievements of women should not be shadowed.

Both the women’s hockey team and Amber Glenn have now sparked discussions on how athletes juggle between what the world expects and their wish.