Olympian Is 'So Sorry' About His Halloween Costume

Shaun White dressed as a disabled character from 'Tropic Thunder'
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 29, 2018 7:20 PM CDT
Updated Oct 30, 2018 2:33 AM CDT
Olympian Is 'So Sorry' About His Halloween Costume
Snowboarder Shaun White accepts the award for best Olympic moment, at the ESPY Awards at Microsoft Theater on Wednesday, July 18, 2018, in Los Angeles.   (Photo by Phil McCarten/Invision/AP)

Shaun White knows how to snowboard—but dress up for Halloween? Not so much, it seems. The three-time winner of Olympic gold went out this weekend as Simple Jack, the disabled character from the movie Tropic Thunder, and promptly issued an apology Monday, People reports. "I owe everyone in the Special Olympics community an apology for my poor choice of Halloween costume the other night," he tweeted. "It was a last minute decision. It was the wrong one. The Special Olympics are right to call me out on it. They do great work supporting many tremendous athletes and I am so sorry for being insensitive. Lesson learned.”

A Special Olympics spokesperson told TMZ that the costume, which White shared on social media, wasn't funny: "We are truly disappointed that Shaun White, an acclaimed Olympian, would choose this costume which is so offensive and causes so much pain." Advocates for the disabled had also protested Ben Stiller's character back when Tropic Thunder came out in 2008, Reuters recalls. "We are asking people not to go to the movie and hope to bring a consciousness to people about using derogatory words about this population," a Special Olympics rep said at the time. As for White's costume, he pulled the image from Instagram—but you can see it here. (One company yanked a costume with a controversial "dead" name.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X