US skater Rippon wants Pence spat to take backseat to games
GANGNEUNG, South Korea (AP) — Adam Rippon doesn't want his monthlong dispute with Mike Pence over the vice president's record on gay rights to overshadow his long-awaited Olympic performance.
Or those of the rest of the American team.
One of two openly gay U.S. athletes at the Pyeongchang Games, Rippon criticized the White House last month for choosing Pence to lead its official delegation for Friday's opening ceremony.
Pence has been considered an opponent of the LGBT community after the conservative vice president signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in March 2015 while serving as governor of Indiana.
Critics said the legislation encouraged discrimination against gay people.