The 28-year-old Rippon is the first openly gay American athlete to compete in the Winter Olympics and didn’t hold back in his criticism of Vice-President Mike Pence before the games, citing Pence’s support of gay conversion therapy. Reports – since denied – said Rippon declined to meet with Pence after the Veep reportedly extended an offer. Since Rippon’s arrival in Pyeongchang, South Korea, he’s mostly focused on his tasks at hand, telling reporters, “I don’t want my Olympic experience to be about Mike Pence.” In the team skating event over the weekend, Rippon helped the U.S. earn a bronze medal with a flawless, albeit not terribly challenging, routine. He’ll have another shot at adding to that medal count during the men’s single skating competition on Thursday. Over the past three days, @AdaRipp has an 85 percent positive score on Social. –Alex Shultz
Republished from 30dB