ESPN writer says he couldn't enjoy the Olympics opening ceremony because the American flag reminded him about the 'rise of white nationalism'

• ESPN writer Bill Rhoden on Monday criticized the prominence of the US flag during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics  
• He said the sight reminded him of flags on display at the January 6 Capitol riots
• 'We've seen the rise of white nationalism,' he said. 'Now when I see the flag [I think] what America am I living in?'  
• Rhoden also said the Olympics should have been cancelled because of the recent surge of coronavirus cases with the spread of the Delta variant 

A prominent sports writer for ESPN caused a stir by saying he was unable to enjoy the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics because the sight of the American flag reminded him of 'the rise of white nationalism' and the January 6 Capitol riots. 

Bill Rhoden made the comments on CBS This Morning on Monday, saying: 'My favorite part of the Olympics was always going to the stadium for the opening ceremonies. I love the opening ceremonies, the march of countries. Then I just realized, you know, man, particularly after these last four years, I had it wrong.' 

Rhoden referred to an article he wrote for the New York Times during the 2012 London Olympics, titled: ‘Opening Ceremony Brings Out the Good Side of Nationalism,’ in which he argued about the benefits of team USA displaying its pride at the global event. 

Speaking with CBS, however, he said, 'Nationalism is not good. We've seen the rise of white nationalism. Nationalism is not good. And also, this whole idea — I keep thinking back on the Capitol riots, and I saw a lot of, you know, US flags. So now when I see the flag and the flag raised, what — what America am I living in?' 

Rhoden spoke of the American basketball team losing 83-76 to France on Sunday, halting its chance at winning the gold medal, and called it a humbling experience for the team. 

He said: 'I just think that these Olympics should be a time of soul searching and winning sometimes is antithetic to soul searching.’

Twitter users were quick to respond to Rhoden's statements, with many outraged with his statements about the flag. 

One user, named Ben Fiscus, said 'It was very disappointing to hear you say what you did about the flag. What happened at the capital was wrong and terrible but people need to quit blaming everything else on that day. Our country was in a lot better shape the last 4 years then the last 6 months!'

Twitter user Chuck Trout tweeted in response: 'Everybody gets to have their opinion but I couldn’t disagree more. The folks that what is the capital are being prosecuted to the extent of the law and everybody agrees that was the wrong thing to do. But after a three hour debacle in our capital he now questions the flag WTH.'

Jonathan T. Gilliam, a conservative author and host of The Experts Podcast, tweeted in response, 'This is the most brain dead leftist rant I’ve heard in a while. @WCRhoden epitomizes the ideological communist left & the tactic of conflating all issues into one racist, antiAmerican rant. Combined with the clueless @CBSThisMorning hosts, the entire video reeks of useful idiots.' 

Meanwhile, speaking on CBS, Rhoden segued to his views on the Olympics continuing despite the recent surge in coronavirus cases.  

He said, ‘I think the Tokyo Olympics and the NFL are sending the wrong message with 80,000 fans, they’re sending the message that this is over. That Covid is over. And it’s not over.’

Asked if they should have cancelled it, Rhoden said, ‘Of course they should have cancelled the Olympics. Our highest value now is money. Everything is being driven by money so they’re telling fans, athletes, roll the dice because we are going forward.’   

Tokyo Olympic organizers announced on Monday that there were 16 new Covid cases linked to the games, including three athletes, bringing the total to 153 cases since July 1. 

The games are being held mostly without spectators as the capital has seen a rise in daily cases in recent weeks, reaching 1,979 last Thursday, the highest since January.