US Olympians are greeted at Milan's airport with star-spangled Ralph Lauren uniforms

VARESE, Italy (AP) — Freestyle skier and Olympic silver medalist Jaelin Kauf’s first stop Wednesday for the Milan Cortina Winter Games was at a Milan airport hotel. She and her U.S. teammates were giddy as stylists fitted them with their Ralph Lauren uniforms for ceremonies.

Kauf bounced with enthusiasm as if at a competition's starting line while checking out her closing ceremony look: A knit turtleneck bearing the U.S. flag, french-tucked into belted canvas twill trousers, which in turn were given the traditional Ralph Lauren-tuck into striped socks. Hiking boots finished the look.

She tried on a red-white-and-blue puffer jacket emblazoned with "2026" and "USA" and a Nordic-style knit cap with two tassels that she bobbed playfully, alongside moguls teammates Olivia Giaccio, Tess Johnson and Elizabeth Lemly.

They took selfies in the wall-size showroom mirror, as their trousers were marked for hemming and stylists offered personalized touches.

“This is such a fun, special experience to be a part of,’’ said Kauf, a three-time Olympian. “It is making the Olympics real. We are in Italy, we are kicking it off getting the outfits, and they are looking so good. It is exciting to be stepping into it and feel the excitement building up to the Games. “

Most U.S. athletes arriving to compete in the Winter Games pass through the Milan airport hotel, where sponsors have prepared garb, sunglasses and other swag to make sure the competitors are properly outfitted for ceremonies, the medal podium, press conferences and free time.

A Starbucks stand offered a caffeine boost for those arriving after a long journey.

The athletes have been sharing their exhilaration at the bounty in social media posts, undergarments from SKIMS, a novel inflatable jacket from Nike for medals ceremonies and sunglasses from Oakley — in addition to the Ralph Lauren looks.

For the opening ceremony, Ralph Lauren provided a winter white duffel coat, Nordic-style knit turtleneck with the U.S. flag and Olympic rings, and soft, pleated wool trousers.

Giaccio raved about the softness of its fabric, saying “very classy,’’ and Kauf marveled at the branding on the duffel coat, down to “TEAM USA” written on the wooden buttons and inside the hood.

“Zero notes,’’ chimed in Johnson.

This is the sixth Winter Games' collaboration between Ralph Lauren and Team USA; besides the ceremony looks, athletes are getting 30 pieces of village wear.

“This is the best team outfit ever, full stop. I have been doing this since 2010, since Vancouver and by far this is the best,’’ said Peter Zeytoonjian, senior vice president of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic committee’s commercial arm.

“My favorite piece for village wear is what I’m wearing,'' he said, sporting a red-white-and-blue cable-knit turtleneck. ”And then for closing, I love the flag sweater. It screams red, white and blue and Team USA. ‘’

The women's moguls team is riding high after first-ever sweep of the top four spots in dual moguls at a World Cup event last month, en route to the freestyle 2026 Winter Games venue in Livigno, near the Swiss border, where the discipline is making its Olympic debut.

The result “just speaks volumes about this women’s team,'' Kauf said. "We are just such strong skiers, such strong competitors. We came here to win. I think this is going to be a really fun event for all of us.''

United States' Olivia Giaccio speaks with her teammates as they wear the Team USA uniforms designed by Ralph Lauren, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

United States' Elizabeth Lemley wears the Team USA uniform designed by Ralph Lauren, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

United States' Jaelin Kauf speaks with a journalist during an Associated Press interview as she wears the Team USA uniform designed by Ralph Lauren, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

From left, United States' Tess Johnson, Olivia Giaccio, Jaelin Kauf and Elizabeth Lemley pose for a photographer as they wear the Team USA uniforms designed by Ralph Lauren, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

From left, United States' Tess Johnson, Jaelin Kauf, Olivia Giaccio and Elizabeth Lemley pose for photographers as they wear the Team USA uniforms designed by Ralph Lauren at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Nuclear talks between Iran and the United States will take place Friday in Oman, the Iranian foreign minister said, as tensions between the countries remain high following Tehran's bloody crackdown on nationwide protests last month.

The announcement Wednesday by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi came after hours of indications that the anticipated talks were faltering over changes in the format and content of the talks. U.S. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, sent a blunt warning to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ahead of the talks.

“I would say he should be very worried,” Trump said of Khamenei in an interview with NBC News.

Turkey had been working behind the scenes to host talks in Istanbul with regional countries taking part and discussions focused on issues like Iran's ballistic missile program and other concerns.

Early Wednesday, a regional official said Iran was seeking a “different” type of meeting focused exclusively on the issue of Iran’s nuclear program, with participation limited to Iran and the United States. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

A similar series of talks had been hosted last year by Oman, a sultanate on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula that long as served as an interlocutor between Iran and the West. Those talks ultimately broke down in June as Israel launched what became a 12-day war on Iran that included the U.S. bombing Iranian nuclear sites.

A White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to discuss the talks publicly, confirmed the talks would happen in Oman. The official said several Arab and Muslim leaders urged the Trump administration on Wednesday not to walk away from talks even as Iranian officials pressed to narrow their scope.

The official added that the White House remains “very skeptical” that the talks will be successful but has agreed to go along with the change in plans out of respect for allies in the region.

Alan Eyre, a former U.S. diplomat once involved in past nuclear negotiations with Tehran, similarly offered a skeptical opinion of talks succeeding.

“Opting for indirect talks is the diplomatic equivalent of a surgeon taking a hit of ether and then putting on gloves before a difficult surgery,” Eyre wrote on X.

Tensions between the countries spiked after Trump suggested the U.S. might use force against Iran in response to the bloody crackdown on nationwide protests last month that killed thousands of people or if Iran conducted mass executions of detained demonstrators. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported Wednesday that over 50,000 people also had been arrested over the protests.

Trump also has been pushing Tehran for a deal to constrain its nuclear program.

Iran’s reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday said he had instructed the foreign minister to “pursue fair and equitable negotiations” with the U.S., in the first clear sign from Tehran it wants to try to negotiate. That signaled the move is supported by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all matters of state and previously dismissed any negotiations.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. hoped to discuss a number of concerns beyond the nuclear issue, including discussions on Iran’s ballistic missiles, support for proxy networks across the region and the “treatment of their own people.”

“The leadership of Iran at the clerical level does not reflect the people of Iran. I know of no other country where there’s a bigger difference between the people who lead the country and the people who live there,” he told reporters.

Vice President JD Vance told “The Megyn Kelly Show” that diplomatic talks with Iran are challenging because Khamenei oversees Tehran’s political system and declines to speak directly with Trump, unlike the leaders of China, North Korea or Russia.

Vance said Trump’s bottom line is that Iran cannot be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon, asserting that other states in the region would quickly do the same.

Iran long has insisted its nuclear program is peaceful. However, Iranian officials in recent years have increasingly threatened to pursue the bomb and had been enriching uranium up to 60% purity, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.

Vance said he believed Trump would work to “accomplish what he can through non-military means. And if he feels like the military is the only option, then he’s ultimately going to choose that option.”

On Tuesday, a U.S. Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that approached an American aircraft carrier. Iranian fast boats from its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard also tried to stop a U.S.-flagged ship in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, the Navy said.

Iran did not formally acknowledge either incident, which strained but apparently did not derail hopes for talks with the U.S.

On Wednesday, Iranian military chiefs visited a missile base in an attempt to highlight its military readiness after the 12-day war devastated Iran’s air defenses. The base holds the Khorramshahr missile, which has a range of more than 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) and was launched toward Israel during the war last year.

Also Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reiterated Turkey’s opposition to foreign intervention in neighboring Iran, calling for the resolution of issues through dialogue.

Turkey has been urgently working for the past week to bring the U.S. and Iran to the negotiating table, and was previously expected to host the talks.

“We believe that external interventions involving our neighbor Iran would pose significant risks for the entire region,” Erdogan said during a visit to Cairo. “Resolving issues with Iran, including the nuclear file, through diplomatic means is the most appropriate approach.”

Associated Press writers Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, Melanie Lidman in Jerusalem, Farnoush Amiri in New York, and Aamer Madhani and Moriah Balingit in Washington contributed to this report.

FILE - In this photo released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, left, is welcomed by an unidentified Omani official, center, upon his arrival at Muscat, Oman, for negotiations with U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, as Iranian Ambassador to Oman Mousa Farhang walks at right, May 11, 2025. (Iranian Foreign Ministry via AP, File)