Hockey star Laila Edwards' family cheers at Olympic debut, thanks to Kelce brothers and a GoFundMe

MILAN (AP) — As soon as U.S. hockey defender Laila Edwards skates onto the Olympic ice ahead of Thursday's gold medal game against Canada, she will scan the stands for the real MVP: Her 91-year-old grandmother.

Their shared ritual was on display at Team USA's semifinals game on Monday night — only made possible through an outpouring of donations to a GoFundMe drive, with by far the biggest individual contribution coming from NFL brother tandem and hometown allies Travis and Jason Kelce.

“As she comes in, she’s looking around,” her grandmother, Ernestine Gray, told The Associated Press. “Then I say, ‘I won’t do anything to distract her.’ Then she did see me and I wave to her and then she waved back.”

Edwards, the first Black female hockey player to represent the U.S. at the Olympics, has fielded a team of her own in Milan. The fundraiser enabled 10 family members and four friends to travel from the U.S. to Italy for her Olympic debut. Still others paid their own way.

After the game, Edwards told the AP that her family's presence in Milan “means everything to me.”

“They helped me get here and make this team and achieve my dream, so it means a lot,” she said.

Hours before the puck dropped Monday, the Edwards family was ready.

Edwards’ mother, Charone Gray-Edwards, has strict rules about travel. She mandated that everyone meet in the hotel lobby 2½ hours before game time, dressed in their Team USA finest. They called a taxi van to fit the large group — including Edwards’ parents, grandmother, aunt, cousin and older brother — and loaded up.

Her parents weren’t sure the entire family would be able to make the journey when she called them a month before the Olympics to say she’d been chosen for the team. They could cover the costs for two people, but the full family roster — all of whom have supported her over the years — would have been far too expensive. And they hadn’t booked early flights or locked in cheaper hotel rates for fear of jinxing her.

“We had to start talking about how to get money,” Gray-Edwards said. “Who would go? How would we afford it?”

The family is accustomed to watching her from afar. When Edwards was 13, she left home to attend the Bishop Kearney Selects Academy in Rochester, New York, before moving on to University of Wisconsin, where she is playing her senior season for the top-ranked Badgers.

The general consensus is that Edwards will be selected in the top three of the Professional Women's Hockey League draft in June, along with Wisconsin teammate Caroline Harvey and Minnesota’s Abbey Murphy.

Still, Edwards' Olympic debut was something everyone wanted to see.

Her father, Robert Edwards, started the GoFundMe drive, entitled: “Send Laila’s Family to the Olympics to Cheer Her On!” He set an ambitious goal of $50,000 so they wouldn't have to choose between a ticket to one of her games and paying the electric bill back in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

“There’s a lot of ups and downs in playing hockey at this high level and so she’s going to need somebody there," her father said. “So I was like, ‘Well, pride be damned: we’re going to do a fundraiser.’ ”

The Kelce brothers grew up in the same town as Edwards. They have been fans of hers since 2023, when she became the first Black player to make the U.S. senior women’s national team, and shouted her out on their popular podcast, “New Heights.”

The top donation to the GoFundMe was $10,000, from someone remaining anonymous; Edwards has confirmed that it came from the Kelces. By early Thursday, the Edwards family had raised more than $61,000.

What's more, Travis Kelce reached out to provide advice to the “Queen of Cleveland," a nickname her teammates gave her following a U.S.-Canada game played there in November. And Jason Kelce and his wife, Kylie, were in the stands Monday to cheer on the U.S. team during their 5-0 win over Sweden. Edwards, a forward-turned-defender, had an assist.

Generosity from the Kelces and locals is another example of how the tight-knit town operates, her parents said, even though their daughter moved away at a young age. Edwards, considered the future face of women’s hockey, has also inspired the Black community in Ohio and beyond.

While diversity is reflected in many sports such as soccer, it hasn’t made a dent in winter sports and there are very few Black athletes in the Milan Cortina Olympic Games. Men’s and women’s hockey globally, including in the U.S., remains predominantly white.

“Just to hear all the people of color talking about, ‘I’ve never watched hockey before and I’m tuning in,’” Gray-Edwards said. “I would love to know what the ratings are. Because everybody at home, everybody is talking about it. All these people are trying to buy jerseys.”

For Gray-Edwards, some of the most meaningful moments have been seeing little boys come up to her daughter for an autograph.

“That means they’re not like, ‘Oh, this is a girl that plays hockey.’ They’re like, ‘This a good hockey player.’ So it doesn’t matter if she’s Black, a woman — she’s a good player,” Gray-Edwards said.

But Gray-Edwards' most treasured memories likely won't be about the games or scores — they will stem from watching her 91-year-old mother and her 22-year-old daughter together at the rink.

“You can just see them waving at each other. My mother’s like jumping and, oh, she just loves it,” Gray-Edwards said.

John Wawrow in Milan contributed to this report.

AP Winter Olympics coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Charone Gray-Edwards, Laila Edwards’ mother, displays hockey stick earrings with Laila’s name and jersey number on them, during the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/ Annie Risemberg)

Laila Edwards’ family pose for a photo in front of their hotel from left, Terrell Duckworth, cousin; Vanessa Duckworth, aunt; Ernestine Gray, grandmother; Charone Gray-Edwards, mother; Robert Edwards, father; background, Bobby Edwards, 27, Laila’s brother, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Annie Risemberg)

United States' Laila Edwards (10) is challenged by Sweden's Hilda Svensson (8) during a women's ice hockey semifinal game between the United States and Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

United States' Laila Edwards (10) challenges with Sweden's Felizia Wikner Zienkiewicz (29) during a women's ice hockey semifinal game between the United States and Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

United States' Laila Edwards (10) challenges with Sweden's Hilda Svensson (8) during a women's ice hockey semifinal game between the United States and Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Robert Edwards, center, the father of United States' Laila Edwards cheers during a women's ice hockey semifinal game between the United States and Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Family members of United States' Laila Edwards cheer during a women's ice hockey semifinal game between the United States and Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

LONDON (AP) — Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former British prince who was stripped of his royal titles because of his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

While Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing in connection with his friendship with Epstein, concerns about Mountbatten-Windsor’s links to the late financier have dogged the royal family for more than a decade. But the arrest of a brother of a monarch was an extraordinary development with no precedent in modern times that will no doubt put more pressure on the crown.

After the arrest, King Charles III said that the law must take its course in the investigation, and he sought to distance the royal family from Mountbatten-Windsor.

Thames Valley Police said that a man in his 60s from Norfolk in eastern England was arrested and remained in custody. The force, which covers areas west of London, including Mountbatten-Windsor’s former home, did not identify the suspect, in line with standard procedures in Britain, but pointed to its statement when asked to confirm if Andrew was arrested.

Mountbatten-Windsor, who turned 66 on Thursday, moved to his Charles' estate in Norfolk after he was evicted from his longtime home near Windsor Castle earlier this month.

Thames Valley Police previously said it was “assessing” reports that Mountbatten-Windsor sent confidential trade reports to Epstein in 2010, when the former prince was Britain’s special envoy for international trade. Those reports stemmed from correspondence between the two men that was among the millions of pages of documents from the U.S. Justice Department’s investigation into Epstein that were released last month.

“Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office,’’ Assistant Chief Constable Oliver Wright said in a statement. “We understand the significant public interest in this case, and we will provide updates at the appropriate time.”

Police also said they were searching two properties.

The arrest came after pictures circulated online that appeared to show unmarked police cars at Wood Farm, Mountbatten-Windsor’s home on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, with plainclothes officers gathering outside.

“This is the most spectacular fall from grace for a member of the royal family in modern times,” said Craig Prescott, a royal expert at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Policing commentator Danny Shaw told the BBC that in most cases, suspects are held between 12 and 24 hours and are then either charged or released pending further investigation.

The absolute longest the former prince can be held for is 96 hours — but this would require multiple extensions from senior police officers and a Magistrate’s Court. It is unclear what time Andrew was arrested.

Andrew will be placed in “a cell in a custody suite” with just “a bed and a toilet,” where he will wait until his police interview.

“There’ll be no special treatment for him,'' Shaw said.

The late Queen Elizabeth II forced her second son to give up royal duties and end his charitable work in 2019 after he tried to explain away his ties to Epstein during a catastrophic interview with the BBC.

But more details about the relationship emerged in a book published last year, and Charles stripped him of the right to be called a prince and ordered him to move.

Then came the unprecedented announcement last week that Buckingham Palace was ready to cooperate in the event of a police inquiry into Mountbatten-Windsor’s links to Epstein.

Charles was forced to act after the U.S. Justice Department released millions of pages of Epstein documents that revealed the extent of his relationship with Mountbatten-Windsor and showed that their correspondence continued long after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting a minor for prostitution.

After Thursday’s arrest, Charles issued a statement to reiterate that he would cooperate with the investigation.

“Let me state clearly: the law must take its course,’’ the king said in a statement signed Charles R. “As this process continues, it would not be right for me to comment further on this matter.’’

He added: “My family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all.’’

Epstein was arrested on sex trafficking charges brought by federal prosecutors in New York in 2019. He took his own life in jail while awaiting trial.

FILE - Prince Andrew leaves St. Giles Cathedral after the arrival of the coffin containing the remains of his mother Queen Elizabeth, in Edinburgh, Scotland, Sept. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, File)

FILE - Britain's Prince Andrew, center, and his daughters Princess Eugenie, left, and Princess Beatrice leave Westminster Abbey after the wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton, in London, April 29, 2011. (AP Photo/Gero Breloer, File)

FILE - Prince Andrew leaves after attending the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham in Norfolk, England, Dec. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

FILE - Britain's Prince Andrew, greets a business leader during a reception at the sideline of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, Pool, File)

FILE - A document showing an email exchange between Jeffrey Epstein and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, and who Epstein referred to as "The Duke," that was in a U.S. Department of Justice release, is photographed Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick, File)

FILE - Britain's Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

FILE - Then-Britain's Prince Andrew, left, and Britain's King Charles III leave after the Requiem Mass service for the Duchess of Kent at Westminster Cathedral in London, Sept. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Joanna Chan, File)