‘Greenland Flag’ Taunt from Fan Ages Miserably as USA Beat Denmark at Winter Olympics

The United States of America men’s ice hockey team defeated their Denmark counterparts 6-3 after trailing 1-2 in first period.

‘Greenland Flag’ Taunt from Fan Ages Miserably as USA Beat Denmark at Winter Olympics

Two Latvians waved the Greenlandic flag in solidarity for the territory amid the USA-Denmark preliminary game (Images via @usahockey and @PuckReportNHL on X)

In Short
  • Fans raised a Greenland flag during the USA vs. Denmark ice hockey game, symbolizing European solidarity.
  • The USA secured a 6-3 comeback victory, advancing to the quarterfinals with six points.
  • Danish captain Jesper Jensen Aabo emphasized the team's focus on hockey, avoiding discussions of geopolitical tensions.

The world tries to separate art and sport from politics, but every now and then, there’s something that shows that it is inherently political. The Winter Olympics 2026, held in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, has set a stage that’s proof enough.

On Saturday, during the USA and Denmark men’s ice hockey game, two fans raised a flag of Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, when the Danes took an early lead. Denmark did give Uncle Sam an early scare with two goals in the first period to kick off the game.

There was the smell of an upset in the Santagiulia Arena in Milan before the stars stepped up to secure a 6-3 comeback win. The Vegas Golden Knights’ Jack Eichel scored once and set up Brady Tkachuk for an assist. The other goals were scored by Matt Boldy, Jack Hughes, Jake Guentzel, and Noah Hanifin.

For Denmark, Nick Olesen, Nicholas B Jensen, and Philip Bruggisser scored the three goals. With two wins, the US team now has six points and a bye to the quarterfinals unless Germany beats them in regulation time in the last group stage game.

The fans, identified as Vita Kalniņa and her husband Alexander Kalniņš, Latvian hockey team fans who live in Germany, told Associated Press that the move was not a taunt but a symbol of European solidarity.

For us as Europeans it was important to show up (with) this symbol as a symbol of a European unity that we support Greenland.

The officials who spotted the flag forbade the couple from waving it at the game, citing personal security reasons and Olympic rules for spectators. According to the website, the fans are allowed to bring the flags of only the National Olympic Committees that are participating in the Games. Nonetheless, the couple said that their message of European unity against Donald Trump‘s aggressive policies was sent anyway to the TV audience.

The Latvians have been quite vocal at the Winter Olympics. The Latvian luge team paid respect to Vladyslav Heraskevych, who was disqualified from participating in men’s skeleton after he refused to comply with the IOC’s ban on his “helmet of remembrance.” The Latvian team addressed the issue and affirmed their support for the Ukrainians.

Earlier, the “European unity” aspect did come to play when the European Union Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas claimed that was a leading reason why the US Vice President JD Vance was booed at the opening ceremony.

Danish captain Jesper Jensen Aabo acknowledged tensions but kept Denmark focused on hockey

Jesper Jensen Aabo, Denmark’s captain, in his post-match press conference, said that they deliberately avoided discussions about the geopolitical tensions between Denmark and the USA.

The Danish team was leading 2-1 at a point against the US men (Image via @BR_OpenIce on X)
The Danish team was leading 2-1 at a point against the US men (Image via @BR_OpenIce on X)

He said that they had enough motivation and didn’t need that extra fuel to play and potentially win against a star-studded team from the USA. However, he acknowledged the tensions that have been ongoing in the real world. Aabo said:

As for the strained relationship between the U.S. and Denmark, “we didn’t even mention it” within the team. We just wanted to win a hockey game against a world-class team. We didn’t need extra fire to fire us up. We were ready for the game even though there’s stuff going around in the real world, so that’s nothing that affected us at all.

As for the Greenlandic flag, he said that the players didn’t notice it in the stands. That said, he admitted the gesture was nice and hoped they would support them.

The Danish men’s team is competing in the Winter Olympics for the second time, having finished seventh in Beijing four years ago. As it stands, they are the eleventh-best team ahead of Italy and will play the second-best non-group winner in the qualification playoff.

Also Read