Trump's opportunistic sporting stance in the White House

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A mix of storytelling and tribalism often lies behind the love of both sport and politics, yet while many U.S. presidents have been sporty the two worlds rarely collide in the White House – beyond a platitude or a handshake.

A reference to a basketball or football game is commonplace for a campaigning politician, but for President Donald Trump – whose team people are either on or off – no intervention in sport is off-limits.

Trump, known for his love of golf but previously involved commercially in various sports, on Monday awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Tiger Woods, in recognition of the 43-year-old winning the Masters in April after 11 years without a major trophy.

The pair has a longstanding relationship, as the golfer celebrated his first Masters win in 1997 at a Trump casino in Atlantic City. The president suggested the award was as much to do with Woods bounce-back from personal difficulties as his reinvention on the course.

Trump has a decades-old interest in Woods. The New York Times on Monday highlighted the men's commercial relationship – Woods has designed a Trump National Doral golf course, and won a competition at the venue in 2013.

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So why does Trump get involved in sport? The simplest explanation is that he just tweets and acts as a fan. Trump congratulated Woods on "your amazing comeback and your amazing life and for giving sports fans a lifetime of memories."

Rick Maese, a sports features writer for the Washington Post, wrote ahead of Trump's inauguration that the incoming president was an "inimitable sports fan," noting that he played an array of sports as a youngster and has profited off boxing and golf as a businessman.

Maese was curious about how Trump's love of sport would play out in the White House. "The intersection of the presidency and the sports world," he wrote, "could be as unpredictable as every other facet of the impending Trump administration."

Eric Trump, Donald Trump, Tiger Woods, Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. cut a ribbon in front of the Tiger Woods Villa at Trump National Doral, Florida on March 5, 2014. /VCG Photo

And the president has, as in other areas of the job, approached sport differently to his predecessors.

Barack Obama was known as "sports fan in chief" and a keen basketball player, George W. Bush owned the Texas Rangers baseball franchise, George H. W. Bush was a supreme sportsman, and Gerald Ford won two college football titles – but throwing a pitch or posing for a photo was normally where it ended for them in office.

Politicians across the globe often use sport as an "everyman" trick, but Trump's social media comments make him a little different.

When he first came to office, there was a lot of discussion about the strategy behind his tweets. Slowly it became apparent there often wasn't one. But the tweets were, wisely or not, often tactical, inserting him into big stories, stories that really have nothing to do with him, when an opportunity arose.

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Monday morning was a perfect example. A slew of headlines zeroed in on Trump's tweeted criticism of a contentious decision to disqualify the winner of Sunday's Kentucky Derby. The president placed himself in a story totally unconnected to him but put himself on a side – against "political correctness."

Tribalism is a key component of Trump's brand of politics. His condemnation of NFL stars such as Colin Kaepernick was a culturally defining moment of his presidency.

He again took an issue that wasn't about him – a footballer dropping to one knee during the national anthem in silent protest at police brutality – and turned it into a polarizing feature of his rallies, placing himself on one side of an argument and attacking the other.

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Trump has also turned routine ceremonial events – photo-ops for previous presidents – into big media stories.

When he invited the college national football champions Clemson Tigers to the White House during the government shutdown in January, he made the story about "McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King's with some pizza” – rather than the team's success, or the black players on the team who refused to attend the event.

U.S President Donald Trump presents fast food to be served to the Clemson Tigers football team at the White House, Washington, DC, January 14, 2019. /VCG Photo

The traditional post-championship trek to Washington DC has been an issue for several teams since Trump won the White House.

The Golden State Warriors won the NBA title in 2017, and made the trip to the capital – victors have been invited to the White House since Ronald Reagan was in office. But the Warriors didn't meet the president after star player Stephen Curry voiced reservations and Trump disinvited them. After the team's victory in 2018, the champions paid a private visit to Obama rather than Trump.

Sport is full of stories, and Trump has become a master – for good or bad – of inserting himself into some of the biggest since becoming president.

In the Library Bar at the Mar a Lago resort – the "Winter White House" – hangs a portrait of Trump in tennis whites, titled "The Visionary." Ultimately, the president's approach to sport since taking office isn't much different from other matters.

Sometimes he lionizes, and sometimes he demonizes and often is just "being Trump" – taking an opportunity to make a point and take the spotlight.