Olympian Hunter Hess Turns Controversy Into Fundraiser With the "Real Loser" Project
Freeskier Hunter Hess just launched The Real Loser Project, a fundraiser that sells t-shirts and hats emblazoned with the phrase “Real Loser,” donating 100% of the proceeds to Stoked, a non-profit organization that gives underserved youth access to action sports like snowboarding, skateboarding, and surfing.
Inspired by the ski club he grew up in at Mt. Bachelor, Oregon—and a play on the intense media circus surrounding comments he and the president made during the 2026 Winter Olympics—Hess wanted to raise money for something that would give others the same sense of community and family he’d found through skiing. Upon chatting with Steve Larosiliere and Selema Masekela, the founders of Stoked, Hess knew it was the perfect fit.
For Hess, the seed of the idea was planted when he made the U.S. Olympic team ahead of the 2026 Winter Games. Back then, it was safe to say he had no idea of the roller coaster he was in for.
Hess, who is originally from Bend, has been competing in halfpipe on the U.S. Freeski team since 2017. With two X Games medals and seven World Cup podiums under his belt, Hess hasn’t exactly been anonymous in the world of skiing. However, it’s not so often that skiers, especially freeskiers, reach the masses or become household names, and even less so when that House is White and on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Before the Games began, Hess spoke at a press conference alongside other Team USA athletes. Hess remembers that neither he nor his teammates gave the press conference much more thought as they left and headed to Milan for lunch that day.
But a clip of Hess from the conference quickly went viral. “Just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything going on in the U.S.,” he’d said, in part. Hess was far from the only American athlete who shared thoughts like this, yet something about what he’d said apparently struck a chord with President Trump, prompting him to publish a now-infamous Truth Social post calling Hess “a real Loser.”
Hess responded with his own social media post.
“I love my country,” he wrote. “There is so much that is great about America, but there are always things that could be better. One of the many things that makes this country so amazing is that we have the right and the freedom to point that out. The best part of the Olympics is that it brings people together, and when so many of us are divided we need that more than ever. I cannot wait to represent Team USA next week when I compete. Thanks to everyone for their support.”
Regardless, by then, the brouhaha had put Hess on blast far beyond just the sport of freeskiing or even the reach of Olympic coverage. He began receiving thousands of death threats a day on any and every platform. Officials were soon involved, investigating any substantial threats, removing any public information about him or his family, and sending local law enforcement to their house. In short, it was an ordeal.
As though Hess wasn’t already under the pressure of trying to land the best halfpipe run he could at the Olympics, the events following President Trump’s post certainly didn’t help.
Competition day rolled around—a snowstorm forced organizers to run both qualifiers and finals on the same day—and Hess recalls being quite literally taped together to compete.
He’d been dealing with an array of injuries, including but not limited to: a broken hand, a massive hematoma on his right hip, and a break in his left hip. Hess’ first qualifier run earned him an 82.75 and a fifth-place spot in the lineup. As Hess skied out of the halfpipe following his final hit, he held both hands up to his forehead in the shape of an “L” and flashed the sign as he skied into the finish corral.
Hess recalled going through a range of emotions the day it all occurred. “It felt like I was a sitting duck and these people were just shooting at me. I had nothing at that point in time, I had no one on my side,” he said. He wanted to stand up for himself somehow and as he thought about how to, he decided, “If I land anything, I’m putting an L on my forehead. If you wanna call me a loser, I’ll call myself one.”
Hess wound up coming in 10th place at the Olympics after crashing in his final runs. As he wrestled with the pain of receiving so many negative comments, not to mention slamming into the halfpipe a few times, he struggled to find any correlation between what he was going through and why he’d started skiing.
That is, until the ski community also began to rally behind Hess and show their support through messages and social media posts. The snowboard community wasn’t far behind and neither was the world beyond snowsports. Hess recalls getting messages from celebrities, an encouraging FaceTime call from Snoop Dogg, and a video message from the women’s cross country team that brought him to tears. “These women are so remarkable, like some of the best athletes in the world and I really value them and their opinions,” he said.
“I’m gonna get 10th place again. I can almost guarantee it,” he continued. “But it’s not about that. I’m still doing it for me. I’m doing these things because I love skiing and I love the process. I love competing. I love the friends and community I have from it.”
Sam Mellish/Getty Images
Following the Olympics, it seemed everyone had heard Hess’ name. He’d get stopped on the street in Bend, a taxi driver in Stockholm thought he’d given them a fake name, even a flight attendant on a flight from Houston to Salt Lake recognized him. While he certainly didn’t deserve any of the hate he got, he didn’t feel like he’d done anything significant enough to deserve the love either—rather, he’d just been caught in a crossfire. Still, Hess knew he wanted to make something out of what had happened. The Real Loser Project was a way for him to do just that.
“You could love what I said, you could hate what I said, but this is something that’s kind of funny. I’m poking fun of myself and we’re raising money for a really, really good cause to get people and kids involved in action sports and to give them that confidence and sense of community that we all love and rely on,” he said of the fundraiser. “I was actually able to do something I’m proud of and I feel good about. If someone comes up to me and they’re like, ‘I’m so happy with what you did,’ I hope they’re talking about this.”
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