Politics

Here are some athletes who have spoken at political conventions—like Donald Trump wants Tom Brady to do

Donald Trump talks to Tom Brady prior to a 2004 playoff game. Elise Amendola / AP

June 17, 2016

2 minutes to read

Donald Trump last weekend said he hopes Tom Brady and other stars from the world of sports would speak at his formal coronation as the Republican presidential nominee, according to The New York Times. He also named UFC President Dana White, NASCAR CEO Brian France, and Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roesthlisberger, according to the report. (Roethlisberger has since said he would do no such thing.)

Asked whether Brady would participate in the convention if approached, a New England Patriots spokesman said the question was the first he’d heard of the possibility.

Brady has previously spoken of his friendship with the tycoon and WWE Hall of Famer-turned-divisive presumptive nominee, going so far as to say he “support[s] all my friends” when asked about Trump’s candidacy. But he has not directly endorsed Trump for president.

Trump, meanwhile, has credited his victory in the Massachusetts Republican primary to his connections with the four-time Super Bowl champion. (Robert Kraft, the Patriots owner, has also spoken fondly of Trump, and head coach Bill Belichick has been photographed at dinner with him over the course of the campaign.)

If Brady does make it to the RNC, he wouldn’t be the first athlete or sports star to mingle at a national party convention. A few examples from recent history:

U.S. Olympians Derek Parra, Kim Rhode, and Mike Eurizone (a Massachusetts native) spoke at the 2012 Republican National Convention. They were joined on stage by several other Olympians.

Paralympic gold medal skier Christopher Devlin-Young also spoke at the 2012 RNC.

Across the aisle in 2012, other U.S. Olympic stars — including Gabrielle Douglas, Aly Raisman, Abby Wambach, Laura Cheney, and Rebecca Soni — held a luncheon in Charlotte the week of the Democratic National Convention, with a focus on children’s health. The event was listed on the DNC calendar, though according to CBS News, it was not formally affiliated with the convention.

Joe Gibbs, the former Washington Redskins head coach and owner of a NASCAR operation, spoke at the 2008 RNC on behalf of John McCain and Sarah Palin.

So did Bryan Clay, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon.

The late Muhammad Ali was photographed and spotted at the 2008 DNC.

Steve Young, the former San Francsico 49ers quarterback, delivered the invocation one night at the 2000 RNC.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, then still best recognized as a pro wrestler, also spoke at the 2000 RNC.

But The Rock was photographed in attendance at that year’s DNC, too. In an interview at the RNC, The Rock — who spoke in the third-person — said he was “not necessarily trying to sway votes toward the Republican candidate or the Democratic candidate for that matter, as much as he is just here to make sure that the 22 million viewers The Rock reaches every single week exercises their right to vote.”

In 1996, Olympian Kent Steffes, a beach volleyball gold medalist, spoke at the RNC. His speech is better remembered for its introduction, from then-Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, whose comments on beach volleyball — “No bureaucrat would have invented it, and that’s what freedom is all about.” — have been cataloged by NBC as one of convention history’s “embarrassing moments.”

NBA Hall of Famer Bill Bradley went on to become a U.S. Senator from New Jersey. He gave the keynote address at the 1992 DNC, eight years before he ran for president.

Similarly, former Steelers quarterback, U.S. Representative, and President George H.W. Bush Cabinet member Jack Kemp addressed several Republican conventions, including in 1996 as the party’s vice-presidential nominee.