US travel ban will not hinder Los Angeles Olympics, LA28 CEO says
Casey Wasserman, LA28 Chairperson and President speaks between Nicole Hoevertsz, IOC Vice President and LA28 Coordination Commission Chair, and Reynold Hoover, LA28 Chief Executive Officer, during a press conference in Los Angeles, California, U.S. June 5, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake
US travel ban will not hinder Los Angeles Olympics, LA28 CEO says
LOS ANGELES - U.S. President Donald Trump's directive banning citizens from 12 countries from entering the U.S. exempts athletes, and LA28 officials said on Thursday they were confident the Games have the full backing of the administration.
Trump signed the proclamation on Wednesday as part of an immigration crackdown he said was needed to protect against "foreign terrorists" and other security threats.
"The important thing for us is that the federal government and this administration recognized the importance of the Olympics and the Games," LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover told Reuters on Thursday.
"There is a carve-out in the order in the travel ban that allows for and assures that there will be access to the Games for the athletes and their families and officials.
"We will be able to have a wide-open Games."
The countries affected by the latest travel ban are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
The entry of people from seven other countries - Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela - will be partially restricted.
Casey Wasserman, the chairman of LA28, the private, non-profit company organizing the Games, said he had "great confidence" that the positive working relationship with the administration would continue.
"It was very clear in the directive that the Olympics require special consideration, and I want to thank the federal government for recognizing that," he told a press conference after hosting International Olympic Committee officials in Los Angeles.
Wasserman added that he did not anticipate the travel ban to have any impact on ticket sales, which will begin next year.
The U.S. along with Canada and Mexico will host the FIFA World Cup in 2026, and Trump said during a task force meeting last month that he wanted people traveling to the U.S. to watch that competition to have a seamless experience during their visit.
"At the White House task force the president, the vice president, all of the administration officials said, 'We welcome the world to come to FIFA,'" Hoover said.
"I think the administration is welcoming the world to come to LA."
Hoover said LA28 continues to forge ties with the administration ahead of the mega-sporting event, now just over three years away.
"We have direct communication with the White House through the chief of staff, we have direct communication with the Department of State, and we are working with the State Department to have embedded teams to coordinate visa access," he said. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
15 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Watkins out of England's games against Andorra, Senegal with injury
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur - Villa Park, Birmingham, Britain - May 16, 2025 Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins during the warm up before the match. Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers/File photo REUTERS Watkins out of England's games against Andorra, Senegal with injury England striker Ollie Watkins will miss the side's matches against Andorra and Senegal after withdrawing due to a minor injury, the England team said. The 29-year-old, who scored 17 goals and provided 14 assists in 54 appearances in all competitions for Aston Villa in the recently concluded season, has been capped 18 times for England, netting five times. With Watkins' withdrawal, captain Harry Kane and Ivan Toney remain England manager Thomas Tuchel's striker options for their two upcoming games. England play Andorra in a 2026 World Cup qualifier in Spain on Saturday before hosting Senegal for a friendly match on Tuesday. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
30 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Indonesian government may install permanent stairlift at Borobudur Temple: Minister
A temporary stairlift was installed ahead of French President Emmanuel Macron's visit on May 29, which caused a heated debate in Indonesia. PHOTO: REUTERS JAKARTA - The government is still finalising a plan to install a permanent stairlift at Borobudur Temple in Magelang, Central Java, to facilitate visitors with special needs to access the World Heritage Site, Culture Minister Fadli Zon said on June 5. A stairlift is a device designed to bring people up and down a stairway. A temporary stairlift was installed ahead of French President Emmanuel Macron's visit on May 29, which caused a heated debate in Indonesia. 'It was just a trial, so actually it has been planned for quite some time,' Mr Fadli said on June 5, as quoted by Antara news agency. 'This is part of an adaptation for inclusivity especially for those who need it, the seniors. There are bhikkhu (monks), senior visitors or disabled people.' Mr Fadli said the stairlift would be permanent, adding that the temporary stairlift would be dismantled and replaced with a better structure. 'We will communicate the needs with those who have the expertise to probably make a tailor-made stairlift,' he said. 'The stairlift will not be destructive because it (would) just (be) attached to the railings.' Previously, the government insisted the stairlift was installed based on a request from the French government so that Mr Macron could ascend Borobudur more quickly and easily. Despite all the preparations, Mr Macron opted to ascend Borobudur on foot, reported on May 29. 'Borobudur Temple is about as high as a 12-storey building and the French president had limited time in his state visit,' Presidential Communication Office head Hasan Nasbi said on May 26, ahead of Mr Macron's visit. However, Mr Hasan said there were then suggestions for the stairlift to be made permanent at the temple. 'Initially the stairlift was temporary but then there were suggestions from several groups, such as the Buddhist community and cultural observers, for the stairlift to be made permanent,' he said on May 28, as quoted by Mr Hasan said the suggestion would make the temple from the 8th century more inclusive, adding that several other World Heritage Sites already provided access for visitors with special needs. 'There is a lift at the Acropolis in Athens as well as at several historical sites in Vietnam,' he said. However, Mr Hasan said the final decision would lie with the related ministry, the Cultural Heritage Council and Borobudur Temple area management. Whether the stairlift would be temporary or permanent would be decided through an official meeting and after considerations by the stakeholders. The case became viral after a video was widely circulated on social media, such as Facebook and X, showing the installation of metal plates and wooden planks on Borobudur Temple's stairs to make way for the lift. Netizens highlighted the activities, saying the stairlift was installed to allow President Prabowo Subianto to reach the summit, without realizing that Mr Prabowo was scheduled to accompany Mr Macron in a visit to the world's largest Buddhist temple. Other netizens, however, welcomed the installation of such mobility facilities, saying other World Heritage Sites had already installed lifts, escalators or ramps to allow disabled people in wheelchairs to also visit and enjoy the sites as an inclusivity drive. Another video shows similar mobility facilities already installed at the Acropolis in Athens, the Coliseum in Rome and the Forbidden City in Beijing. THE JAKARTA POST/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
AsiaOne
an hour ago
- AsiaOne
6 killed, 80 wounded in intense Russian air attacks on Ukraine, World News
KYIV - Russia launched an intense missile and drone barrage at the Ukrainian capital Kyiv in the early hours of Friday (June 6), killing at least six people, Ukrainian officials said, as powerful explosions reverberated across the country. The attacks followed a warning from Russian President Vladimir Putin, conveyed via US President Donald Trump, that the Kremlin would hit back after Ukrainian drones destroyed several strategic bomber aircraft in attacks deep inside Russia. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said three emergency responders were killed in the missile and drone salvo against the capital. Two died in an attack on the northern city of Chernihiv and at least one more in the northwestern city of Lutsk. "Those killed in Kyiv were rescue workers who arrived at the scene of an initial strike and, unfortunately, were killed in a repeat Russian strike," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, writing on X, said Russia had "'responded' to its destroyed aircraft... by attacking civilians in Ukraine.... Multi-storey buildings hit. Energy infrastructure damaged." Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces had carried out the strike on military and military-related targets in response to what it called Ukrainian "terrorist acts" against Russia. "They gave Putin a reason to go in and bomb the hell out of them last night," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday, when asked about how Ukraine's earlier drone strikes had affected the conflict. Zelenskiy said 80 people nationwide had been injured in the attacks, which also struck several other towns and cities. He said residents could still be trapped under rubble. In Chernihiv, the national emergency services said two bodies were recovered from the rubble of a wrecked industrial enterprise. In Lutsk, the body of a man was found in the ruins of an apartment block, while emergency crews kept searching for his wife. Thirty people were hurt in the city, where educational institutions and a government building were also hit. Russian forces also struck industrial facilities and infrastructure in the western city of Ternopil, leaving parts of it without power, Mayor Serhii Nadal said. The regional administration said the attack had injured 10 people and asked residents to temporarily stay inside due to a high concentration of toxic substances in the air after a fire. The air force said Russia had used 407 drones, one of the largest numbers recorded in a single attack. It said 45 cruise and ballistic missiles were also fired. Attacks hit Kyiv transport system Kyiv's metro transport system was disrupted by a Russian strike that hit and damaged tracks between stations, the military administration said. The state rail company said it was also diverting some trains due to rail damage outside the city. Reuters witnesses reported a series of booming explosions powerful enough to rattle windows far from the impact sites. Some Kyiv residents sought shelter in metro stations, or in underground car parks. In the capital's Solomianskyi district, a Russian drone slammed into the side of an apartment building, leaving a gaping hole and burn marks, a Reuters photographer at the scene said. Falling concrete blocks from the building crushed cars parked below. Two police investigators were examining what appeared to be the drone's engine. Earlier in the night, Reuters reporters heard the sound of Russian kamikaze drones buzzing in the sky, accompanied by the sounds of outgoing fire from Ukrainian anti-aircraft batteries. Zelenskiy called for concerted pressure on Russia. "If someone is not applying pressure and is giving the war more time to take lives - that is complicity and accountability. We must act decisively," he wrote on X. The Ukrainian military said it had launched a pre-emptive strike overnight on the Engels and Dyagilevo airfields in the Russian regions of Saratov and Ryazan, in addition to striking at least three fuel reservoirs. In one of the most audacious attacks of the three-year-old war between Ukraine and Russia, Ukrainian spies last weekend destroyed some of Russia's strategic bomber aircraft on the ground using quadrocopter drones hidden in wooden sheds. After a phone conversation with Putin on Wednesday, Trump said the Kremlin was planning an unspecified response to the Ukrainian attack on the Russian air bases. [[nid:718785]]
