Neither the Obamas nor the Bidens will be attending the Sochi Winter Olympics, but a delegation that includes tennis legend Billie Jean King will represent the US at the opening ceremonies in February, the Washington Blade reports.
The report quotes a White House spokesperson as saying that the president’s schedule prevents him from going to Sochi but that Obama “looks forward to cheering them on from Washington.”
First Lady Michelle Obama, who is also not attending the Games, led the US delegation to London’s Summer Olympics in 2012, the Blade notes.
Former Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano and lesbian ice hockey player Caitlin Cahow will also be part of the opening-ceremony delegation, while Deputy Secretary of State William Burns will lead the delegation for the closing ceremony.
French President François Hollande, European Union commissioner Viviane Reding, and German President Joachim Gauck have also announced that they will not be at the Games.
A Dec 17 report on the Flanders News site says that neither Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo nor Minister-President of Flanders Kris Peeters will be attending the Games.
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