Eagles' Saquon Barkley says he's not part of Trump's sports council: ‘Definitely a little shocked when my name was mentioned'
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Philadelphia Eagles star running back Saquon Barkley said Monday he was surprised to learn he had been named to the President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition because he had turned down the opportunity earlier this year.
Barkley is one of several top athletes who President Donald Trump named to the revamped council that the president unveiled at a White House event last week. When asked about his appointment on Monday, Barkley said he doesn't plan to participate.
'Couple months ago it was brought to my team about the council. So, I'm not really too familiar with it. I felt like I'm going to be super busy so, me and my family thought it was probably in the best interest to not accept that,' Barkley told reporters. 'So, was definitely a little shocked when my name was mentioned. I'm assuming it's something great, so I appreciate it, but was a little shocked my name was mentioned.'
CNN has reached out to the White House for a response to Barkley's comments.
Barkley and the president are on friendly terms. He was seen spending time with Trump a day before the team's scheduled visit to the White House to celebrate their recent Super Bowl victory. Trump approached the reporters assembled at the airport, saying about Barkley: 'What a nice guy.'
He added: 'I wanted to race him, but I decided not to do it.' The pair later boarded Air Force One.
In April, pictures on social media showed Barkley and Trump at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, with multiple 'Make America Great Again' hats sitting on the table. Barkley used social media to respond to criticism over his decision to meet and play golf with Trump.
'Lol some people are really upset cause I played golfed and flew to the White House with the PRESIDENT,' he said on X. 'Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand. Just golfed with Obama not too long ago … and look forward to finishing my round with Trump! Now ya get out my mentions with all this politics and have amazing day.'
The other athletes named by the White House as being appointed to the council include golfer Bryson DeChambeau, who will serve as chair; NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, San Francisco 49ers defensive star Nick Bosa; Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker; and former college football player Cody Campbell, who is also the head of Texas Tech's Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) collective and has been a key voice contributing to Trump's policies on college sports.
Other notable appointees are NFL commissioner Roger Goodell; hockey legend Wayne Gretzky; golfer Nelly Korda; WWE executive and professional wrestler Paul 'Triple H' Levesque; golf legends Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player; Hall of Fame pitcher Mariano Rivera; retired quarterback and current CBS NFL commentator Tony Romo; golfer Annika Sörenstam; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa; former New York Giants star Lawrence Taylor; and Florida Panthers player Matthew Tkachuk.
Trump was joined by professional athletes on Thursday as he signed the order to expand his Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, which included reviving the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools. The event, which featured DeChambeau, Butker and Taylor, among others, comes as the US prepares to host the 2025 Ryder Cup, 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics — all of which are major feathers in Trump's cap for his second term.
The president, who often boasts that he gets to oversee the milestone sporting events, has been heavily invested in making them a success. He has also used his bully pulpit to reshape cultural issues, many of which have been tied directly to sports, including new policies on transgender athletes and threatening the Washington Commanders football team to change its name back to the 'Redskins' or potentially face restrictions on a major stadium deal.
This initiative seems to be an attempt to build on that momentum. The order formally reestablishes the Presidential Fitness Test, first introduced by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1966, creating school-based programs that reward 'excellence in physical education' and developing criteria for a Presidential Fitness Award, according to details of the order obtained by CNN.
The test, which will be administered by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., brings back the fitness challenge that permeated public schools and anointed children who received the highest scores with presidential recognition. Former President Barack Obama abandoned the test in 2012 and replaced it with an assessment called the FitnessGram, focused on bettering individual health.
CNN's Alayna Treene and Ben Morse contributed to this report.
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