U.S. Olympian Hunter Hess said “there is so much that is great about America, but there are always things that could be better,” a day after President Trump lashed out at him for saying he had “mixed feelings” about representing the United States at the Winter Olympics in response to a journalist’s question last week.

“I love my country,” Hess, a freestyle skier, said in a social media post Monday. “There is so much that is great about America, but there are always things that could be better. One of the many things that makes this country so amazing is that we have the right and the freedom to point that out.

“The best part of the Olympics is that it brings people together, and when so many of us are divided we need that more than ever,” Hess said. “I cannot wait to represent Team USA next week when I compete. Thanks to everyone for their support.”

American snowboarders at the Olympics also weighed in when asked by a journalist on Monday if they’d like to address Mr. Trump calling Hess a “real loser” or how they felt representing Team USA.

Bea Kim said she thinks “there are a lot of different opinions in the U.S. right now. Obviously, we’re very divided. I personally am very proud to represent the United States. That being said, I think diversity is what makes us a very strong country and what makes us so special.”

Maddie Mastro said she was proud to represent the United States, but she’s “also saddened with what’s happening at home. It’s really tough. I feel like we can’t turn a blind eye to that. But at the same time, I represent a country that has the same values as mine, of kindness and compassion. And we come together in times of injustice.”

“My parents being immigrants, this one definitely hits pretty close to home,” two-time Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim said. “I think in moments like these, it is really important for us to unite and kind of stand up for one another, for all that’s going on. And I think that I’m really proud to represent the United States. The U.S. has given my family and I so much opportunity. But I also think that we are allowed to voice our opinions on what’s going on. And I think that we need to lead with love and compassion. And I would love to see some more of that.”

International Olympic Committee spokesperson Mark Adams told journalists Monday that he was “not going to add to the discourse” about Mr. Trump’s remark.

“I won’t comment on the statement of the president of the United States, nor would I do so for any other head of state,” Adams said.

When asked if Hess needs more protection after Mr. Trump’s comment, Adams declined to publicly discuss security issues.

The U.S. and Paralympic Committee said Sunday it was aware of an increasing amount of harmful messages directed at athletes, and that it was doing its best to report credible threats to law enforcement and remove harmful content, the Associated Press reported.

“I think it’s important to say what we feel and stand up for what we believe in and stand up to injustice, and I’ve been really proud seeing other athletes doing that,” Gus Kenworthy, a skier competing for the United Kingdom in the 2026 Winter Games, said in a video on social media late Sunday.

Last week, Kenworthy, who is a dual U.S.-U.K. national and has previously competed for Team USA, posted a photo of an explicit message condemning U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on social media. The message was written in urine in the snow.

“I just want to remind everyone that you can love the U.S. and be proud to be an American – I am – and still think it can be better, and still think that the country can improve,” Kenworthy said. “And just because you love the U.S. doesn’t mean you stand with this administration and stand behind their politics and their legislation and support the things that they support. Because I don’t. And I do not support ICE, and I think it’s absolutely evil and awful and terrifying.”

Last week, Team USA freestyle skier Chris Lillis told journalists, in response to questions about political issues at home, that he felt “heartbroken about what’s happened in the United States” and that “as a country, we need to focus on respecting everybody’s rights and making sure that we’re treating our citizens as well as anybody with love and respect.”

Late Sunday, he posted a social media video of him falling while attempting a ski run.

“For all the haters here’s one of me crashing to get you stoked,” the caption said. “Don’t worry I’m pretty tough.”

“Athletes since the ancient games have been political and politicized,” J. Simon Rofe, an associate professor in sports diplomacy at the University of Leeds told CBS News.

Rofe mentioned when American track medalists Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists in protest on the podium at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico as just one of many examples of Olympic athletes using their positions to take a stand on political issues.

“What’s noticeable [in these Winter Games] is athletes’ agency in being political. So the platforms of social media provide that opportunity to a far greater degree than we’ve seen in the past,” Rofe said. “Sport plays that huge role in society and communities of convening people together. It allows for conversations that wouldn’t happen otherwise. Now, some of those conversations may be to your taste and to your disposition, and some of them will not be.”

HONG KONG — The deadliest fire in Hong Kong in decades last year left thousands of residents without some of their friends, family or the place they called home. More than two months later, the occupants of the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex are not only waiting for answers about what happened, but longing for a new place.

Authorities are yet to unveil plans for long-term resettlement after surveying the residents’ preferences. The Lunar New Year on Feb. 17, meanwhile, is stirring recent memories of celebrating the festival in what is now a largely burnt complex.

The massive blaze that engulfed seven apartment buildings killed 168 people on Nov. 26, 2025, shattering a close-knit community. Authorities blamed substandard scaffolding netting and foam boards from the buildings maintenance project for rapidly spreading the fire. Although some arrests were made, an independent committee is still investigating the cause.

The Associated Press talked to four families who lived in the complex or lost their loved ones there. Here’s what they said:

When flames devoured towers of the Wang Fuk Court complex, Pearl Chow, 87, fled her apartment with essential documents, like her title deed. Her grandson, Dorz Cheung, 33, rushed from his office to find her safe nearby, but the fire was raging.

That night, Chow went to a friend’s home and didn’t sleep, while Cheung watched the flames for hours, crying while clutching his friend. They both miss old photos lost in their home in Tai Po, a suburban district in the city’s north.

Now they are separated into two temporary housing units on separate floors, each around 100 square feet (9.2 square meters). Chow was satisfied, but Cheung couldn’t call it home.

“Only permanent residence is called home. That’s the root,” he said.

Chow still regularly returns to Tai Po for church and grocery shopping, despite the hourlong journey. They want to be resettled in Tai Po, where they lived for decades, in a unit about the same size as their old apartment.

“I am an elderly person. When they finish building, I may have gone to my heavenly home,” she said with a laugh.

Data from the 2021 population census showed over one-third of some 4,600 residents in the complex were aged 65 or above.

While the government proposed measures to combat bid-rigging in building maintenance and enhance fire safety in January, Cheung feels their resettlement hasn’t been addressed. He said he lost his sense of security with the authorities after the blaze.

“We can only wait, be tossed around like a ball,” he said.

Kit Chan, 74, lived in her 460-square-foot (43-square-meter) apartment for over 40 years and raised her children with her husband in the complex, where neighbors helped look after each other’s children.

Chan had planned to spend the rest of her life there, but the blaze forced the couple into a studio unit at a youth hostel half the size of their apartment. Weeks ago, they heard some fire victims were asked to move out, and that distressed her.

“It’s like being unable to get by in my final years,” she said.

She hasn’t been asked to leave, but is uncertain how long they can stay.

Chan initially wanted to be resettled in a new home built on the fire site, but the government estimates rebuilding will take about a decade — too long for her to wait. She can compromise on a similar-sized apartment in another district with good transport.

Her husband, Keung Mak, 78, hopes they can return to their old home just to have a look. It has memories like their family and wedding photos. “Many people hope they can at least see how badly it was burned,” Mak said.

During past Lunar New Year celebrations, Isaac Tam’s family used to visit neighbors on their floor with gifts. Now, the familiar faces he has known for years are scattered across the city.

The loss of their two apartments in the fire was heartbreaking. His parents cried, and his 92-year-old grandfather grew thinner. But Tam, 23, said at least all his family members were alive.

Last weekend, they were preparing to move into temporary homes, smaller than their old apartments and farther from the city center. They shelled out money to renovate them.

While he said the government’s handling is not as bad as some say, he still worries about his grandfather adjusting to a new district with temporary housing. Back in Tai Po, the grandfather used to have a morning dim sum routine with his friends.

As they await the government’s resettlement plans, they have been weighing apartments in another district that will be ready sooner than units in Tai Po, which he prefers because he grew up there.

Time is their priority, given the grandfather’s age, Tam said.

“I also fear he can’t wait until we secure an apartment of about 400 square feet (about 37 square meters),” he said, regardless of the district.

Phyllis Lo’s mother called her after seeing thick smoke outside her door when the blaze started. On the call, knowing she might not survive, her 74-year-old mother asked Lo, 48, and her brother to live well. Lo immediately rushed to her childhood home and called again minutes later. No one answered. The next morning, police told her they found her mother’s body.

After learning that a mix of issues including substandard materials were used in the building maintenance project and failed fire alarms, Lo wondered if the tragedy could have been avoided if each government department had done a better job. While she couldn’t determine who should bear responsibility, she blamed herself for not monitoring the project for her mother more closely.

What bothers her most is the lack of transparency — when she can see her burnt apartment, how authorities will use the $589 million relief fund. She hopes to get updates from the nine-month investigation.

She wants her childhood home rebuilt at the fire site, but considers the proposed timeline of about a decade unreasonably long.

As the Lunar New Year neared, Lo made turnip cakes — a tradition she inherited from her mother. “Maybe she is still everywhere and still seeing us now. I really want to be with her,” she said in tears.

In an emailed reply to The Associated Press’ questions, the government said it attached great importance to the residents’ long-term accommodation arrangements and had already received survey replies from over 95% of the homeowners. It did not give a timeline but said its task force is analyzing their preferences and that the government will announce the plans after finalizing them.

Jack Rozdilsky, professor of disaster and emergency management at York University in Canada, said the city is moving to a disaster recovery phase and noted that concrete plans for continuous mental health and trauma coping aid play a key role in long-term success for any resettlement measure.

Rozdilsky saw the community survey on resettlement as a good sign because a one-size-fits-all proposal will not satisfy the households.

While rebuilding living spaces is complicated, he said, reconstructing a community is much harder. He said understanding what promoted community at the housing complex before the fire and incorporating those features — be it a bus stop or a gathering point in a park — would help.

“Very small things matter,” he said.