Donald Trump's interaction with a young athlete at a White House event has drawn much public attention.
'Killing Dreams': Donald Trump Faces Backlash Over Remarks to Young Volleyball Player
The Presidential Physical Fitness Youth Challenge ceremony, held in the Oval Office and designed to honor America’s fittest young students, took an unexpected turn after President Donald Trump made a certain remark that grabbed the headlines.
While speaking with children at the White House event, Trump's remarks to a young volleyball player regarding her height prompted online discussion.
The president bluntly told the player that her height would prevent her from succeeding in the sport.
A video of the incident went viral and drew criticism online. Netizens called out Trump and accused the president of demotivating young athletes.
'Soccer Might Be Better'
Donald Trump speaks with a child at the Presidential Physical Fitness Youth Challenge ceremony.
The young girl who attended Trump’s Presidential Physical Fitness Youth Challenge event has not been identified. However, the awkward exchange she had with the president went viral.
She was among several children invited to the South Lawn for the event.
Following activities on the South Lawn, the children gathered around Trump at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.
Therein, the president zeroed in on the little girl and spoke about sports and fitness.
During the conversation, the girl told the president, “I play volleyball, and in the summer I'm trying to get into soccer.”
Trump responded, saying, “And with your height, do you smash the ball, the volleyball? Can you get up high? Can you jump high?”
After the girl indicated she could not jump high, Trump said, “Soccer might be better.”
Soon, the clip of the incident went viral on social media, drawing strong reactions.
One user wrote, “Uninspiring ‘leader’ killing dreams with his politics and directly murdering this little girl’s dreams.”
Another added, “Would anyone expect anything else from the piece of [expletive] that is Donald Trump.”
“What an [expletive]. Let the girl have a dream. Saying stuff like that makes people not believe in themselves,” an individual stated.
Jimmy Kimmel Reacts to Donald Trump's Comments
Jimmy Kimmel addresses Donald Trump’s conversation with kids at the Presidential Physical Fitness Youth Challenge ceremony.
Meanwhile, after Trump's remarks went viral, late-night host Jimmy Kimmel responded to the same.
However, instead of talking about Trump's interaction with the little girl, Kimmel went straight to the moment the 79-year-old was heard talking to the kids about transgender rights and “men in women’s sports.”
During the Tuesday, May 5, episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the host showed a clip where Trump asked the kids, “Did you see that they had a man power lifter, and he decided to go the opposite direction… He was a failed power lifter.”
The president added, “But he went on the other side, and he decided that he wanted to go into women's sports, and he broke the record by 118 pounds.”
Reacting to the same, Kimmel said, “ Very, very normal. Just a totally lucid, very rational, clear-minded, level-headed person sharing his thoughts on gender reassignment with a group of young kids."