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US senator calls for burning of China-made Team USA Olympic uniforms | The US-China Olympic rivalry heated up in an unfashionable way Thursday, when
Senate Majority Leader Harry
Reid suggested burning the US team’s outfits for the opening ceremony because
they were made in China . “I’m so upset. I think the Olympic Committee should
be ashamed of themselves,” the Daily Telegraph quoted him as telling reporters,
when asked about an ABC News report on the origin of the Ralph Lauren-designed
uniforms. “I think they should take all the uniforms, put them in a big pile and
burn them. “If they have to wear nothing but a symbol that says USA on it, painted
by hand, that is what they should wear,” he said. It was the strongest of reactions
about the outfits heard on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers who often bicker over
ways to keep US jobs, including in the textile industry, from heading overseas
to low-wage economies like China and India. A Congress that has rarely been so
divided, was for once in this bitter election year, united in its condemnation
of the Olympic Committee. “You’d think they’d know better,” Republican House Speaker
John Boehner said of the fashion kerfuffle during a press briefing. House Democratic
leader Nancy Pelosi, his predecessor as speaker, also expressed her disappointment
at the fashion faux pas. “We take great pride in our Olympic athletes. They represent
the very best, and they’re so excellent. “It’s all so beautiful, and they should
be wearing uniforms that are made in America,” she said. Olympic Committee (USOC)
spokesman Patrick Sandusky defended the decision. “Unlike most Olympic teams around the
world, the US Olympic Team is privately funded and we’re grateful for the support of our
sponsors. “We’re proud of our partnership with Ralph Lauren, an
iconic American company, and excited to watch America ’s finest athletes compete
at the upcoming Games in London ,” he said. Sandusky also defended the decision
on Twitter, citing Ralph Lauren being an American company while stepping around
the manufacturing location issue. “All this talk about olympic uniforms made in
China is nonsense. Polo RL is an American company that supports American athletes,”
his tweet read. But outraged US Olympic sports fans made their feelings known
on the official US Olympic Committee Twitter site. “talk about denigrating USA
athletes,” wrote one fan. “Bugging me that @RalphLauren couldn’t make the @USOlympic
uniforms in the US . God knows there’s plenty of empty factories & qualified pple,”
Mary Marcanotio tweeted. Nick Symmonds, a US Olympic 800-meter runner, tweeted,
“Our Ralph Lauren outfits for the Olympic opening ceremonies were made in China
. So, um, thanks China .” Irate lawmakers wrote a letter Thursday to USOC chairman
Lawrence Probst saying it was “shocking and deeply disappointing” to learn of
the China-made uniforms, and calling on the committee to take steps to ensure
such an “embarrassment” never happens again. “We have enormous pride in all of
our Olympic athletes and want to ensure they are displaying the same pride we
have in our American workers when competing on the world stage,” congressman Steve
Israel and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand wrote.
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