US hockey star Brady Tkachuk slams ‘clearly fake’ White House TikTok after anti-Canada slur
American ice hockey star Brady Tkachuk has vehemently denied a doctored TikTok video, shared by the White House, which falsely depicted him disparaging Canadians after his team’s Olympic gold medal victory.
Tkachuk labelled the video “clearly fake” and insisted it contained words he would “never say.”
The controversial video features fabricated audio, purporting to show Tkachuk referring to Canadians as “maple syrup eating (expletive),” with the expletive bleeped out. A disclaimer on the video notes that it “contains AI-generated media.”
Responding to the fabrication, Tkachuk stated: “It’s clearly fake because it’s not my voice and not my lips moving.”
He added: “I’m not in control of any of those accounts. … I know that those words would never come out of my mouth.”
When asked if he approved of the video, he was unequivocal: “I would never say that. That’s not who I am.”
The White House has not yet responded to requests for comment.
Tkachuk also addressed speculation that he was the voice heard shouting “close the northern border” during Team USA’s celebratory phone call with US President Donald Trump, following Sunday’s 2-1 overtime win against Canada for the Winter Olympics gold medal.
“I’ve been seeing stuff that people think it’s me, but if you watch the video, that’s not my voice and something that I never say,” he clarified.
“I don’t really know how that kind of took a storm on its own when I play here and give everything I have here.”
The 26-year-old Arizona native, captain of the NHL‘s Ottawa Senators, has spent his entire professional career in the Canadian capital.
He and other members of the US team recently returned from Italy to resume the NHL season, with some attending a State of the Union speech in Washington where they were met with cheers.
The US women’s team also secured a 2-1 overtime victory against Canada, marking the first time Americans swept both Olympic hockey tournaments.
However, the celebration of these twin victories has been overshadowed by U.S. politics since the men’s final.
During a post-game locker room call on speakerphone, Trump extended a White House invitation to the men’s team, then added: “We’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that.”
He also joked about being impeached if he failed to invite them. Some male players chuckled, a reaction at least one later regretted.
Tkachuk acknowledged the women’s team’s perspective: “I mean, I get it. We supported them, they supported us. You can’t control what other people say.”
While several men’s players travelled to Washington to visit Trump at the White House and attend the State of the Union, many women’s players were already en route to their professional or college clubs.
They only learned of their invitation late on Sunday, making it difficult to alter travel plans already complicated by bad weather on the East Coast.
Trump later stated that plans were underway for the women’s team to visit, though the earliest this could happen would be late spring, after the PWHL season concludes. Rapper Flavor Flav has since scheduled a July celebration for the women’s team in Las Vegas.
Despite what Hilary Knight called a “distasteful” joke by Trump, she emphasised that it would not detract from the American women’s historic performance.
Players from both US teams have consistently highlighted their strong bond in the Milan athletes’ village and their mutual support. Matthew Tkachuk, Brady’s brother and a Florida Panthers star, echoed this sentiment: “Our two teams were so close. We watched other events together. We went and supported them. We loved the women’s team.
“The women’s team loved us and we’re so proud that we had a clean sweep of gold medals and just so much respect for them and the other athletes.”
Brady Tkachuk was asked about balancing his pride as an American with his captaincy of the Senators during a period of heightened tension between the two nations.
He responded: “First and foremost, I’ve given absolutely everything I have as an Ottawa Senator — blood, sweat and tears. When you represent the US, being an American, it’s an honour. There are only three teams that have won the gold medal for the U.S., so to be part of that is special.”
Source: independent.co.uk
