The ESPN analyst who called JD Vance a ‘demon’ after seeing him at the Winter Olympics has now gone much further in another angry rant from the Games in Italy.
Sarah Spain, who contributes to espnW and previously appeared on ‘Around the Horn’, said she felt ‘ill’ when Vance appeared with his children to watch the women’s hockey game between the United States and Czechia that she was also at.
It sparked an angry online backlash between those backing Spain and the many supporters of the vice-president and now Spain appears to have gone a lot further in attacking Vance while hitting back at the social media criticism she’s received.
She uploaded a video to Instagram at the weekend that she captioned: ‘Hey Sarah, why are zero-follower count troll accounts posting comments about how fat and ugly you are on your posts all of a sudden? GREAT QUESTION.’
She then said in the video: ‘Just wanted to give you a heads-up that if you see some weird comments on my Instagram that I haven’t had the chance to delete yet, it’s because I got called out for criticizing a pedophile-protecting American-who-was-executed-by-ICE-slandering person.
‘Some of the people that are so cotton-headed that would defend literally anything done by this person are sliding into my mentions to call me fat, tell me they hope I die and get cancer.
Sarah Spain has launched another furious attack at JD Vance from the Winter Olympics
JD Vance was seen going to his seat at the women’s hockey match between the United States and Czechia on February 5
‘So, if you see one of those don’t be confused. it’s just people who are currently in favor of what this administration are doing in this country.
‘I couldn’t give two s***s about their opinion of me. Especially when I am here living the dream.
‘Let’s care more about people who are protecting those who rape kids and murder American citizens than the journalists who call them out for it.’
Spain doesn’t directly name Vance in her latest post but given how high-profile her initial comments about him became, it seems clear who she means.
The 45-year-old Spain had initially explained crossing paths with Vance on her podcast ‘Good Game with Sarah Spain.’
‘Twelve minutes into the first period, that area suddenly is awash with large men in suits with earpieces. And here comes JD Vance carrying a child and a bunch of security, and eventually Marco Rubio,’ Spain said.
‘When I see JD Vance’s eyeliner face, I literally feel ill. I feel like I just looked at a demon, like the Devil.
‘And I don’t even believe in that, but my body felt like when you’ve been spooked and you have a little tingle that feels like, “ooh, something’s not right.”‘
Spain first sparked backlash by claiming that she felt ‘ill’ sitting next to JD Vance at the Games
The award-winning journalist is covering the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina
Spain, an Emmy and Peabody Award-winning journalist, also claimed that the Secret Service detail was ‘blocking half the ice. We’re trying to watch a hockey game.’
At a later hockey game involving the US and Canada, Spain saw Vance again, but this time he was with boxer and MAGA-adjacent influencer Jake Paul.
‘[Vance] brought a little demon friend, Jake Paul. Talk about only the finest people representing America,’ she said.
She continued: ‘I was so freaking annoyed. And if I thought I was annoyed just from them being there, my simmer turned into a boil when the Italian press in front of us insisted on standing up after every single goal so that they could gawk at JD Vance and Jake Paul.’
Spain’s main gripe with Vance was how he has responded to various controversies that have arisen as a result of the Trump administration’s mass deportation policy.
Specifically, she condemned Vance’s statements about Alex Pretti, the protestor in Minneapolis who was fatally shot by US Border Patrol agents on January 24.
‘This human being, allegedly, with demon energy, is slandering a dead man who was shot in the back while helping a woman and was not fighting and was not dangerous,’ Spain said.
Shortly after the shooting, Vance reposted a social media post from White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller that described Pretti as ‘an assassin’ who ‘tried to murder federal agents’.
The Vice President has attended multiple events at the Games in Milan-Cortina
Spain also complained about seeing Vance and the controversial YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul (left) at a subsequent women’s hockey game
In an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail, Vance refused to apologize for endorsing Miller’s statement.
‘For what?’ he said when asked if he’d apologize to Pretti’s family.
‘If something is determined that the guy who shot Alex Pretti did something bad, then a lot of consequences are going to flow from that. We’ll let that happen,’ Vance said. ‘I don’t think it’s smart to prejudge the investigation.’
Spain has worked for ESPN in various roles since 2010, featuring on various shows, such as ‘First Take,’ ‘Olbermann,’ ‘Mike & Mike’ and ‘The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz.’
She also launched the first and only daily women’s sports podcast, ‘Good Game with Sarah Spain,’ in July 2024. The show was nominated for ‘Best Sports Podcast’ at the 2025 Ambies Awards for Excellence in Audio.
