The 22-year-old pop artist, Tate McRae, stirred up a conversation around her appearance in an NBC ad for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which also featured Team USA athletes. After some commenters questioned why she would support the US instead of her native country, Canada, McRae reassured her Canadian fans by sharing a childhood photo of herself holding a mini Canadian flag on Instagram Stories on Wednesday, February 4th. In the caption, she wrote, "Y'all know I'm Canada down."
In McRae's ad for NBC's coverage of the Olympics, the pop star enters the frame in a red snowsuit and skis, stopping to ask a CGI snowy owl for directions. "Oh, hi, I'm a bit lost," McRae begins, to which the owl coos, "Who?" "Tate McRae," she announces, only to receive another "who" from the owl. "I'm nobody. Nobody's girl that is," she says with a wink, referencing her hit single "Nobody's Girl," which plays in the background.
"I'm trying to get to Milan for an amazing opening ceremony and meet Team USA," she says. "Then it's the weekend with America's best skating for gold, and Lindsay Vonn's epic comeback. Then come back to the States for the big game, Super Bowl LX." After another "who" from the owl, she replies, "Okay, I'll just ask someone else, then. Forget it."
The ad concludes with the snowy owl conversing with a great horned owl in Italian, with one asking, "What did Tate McRae want?" The other replies, "I don't know, I don't speak English."
The advertisement was met with mixed responses, mostly due to McRae's Canadian roots. She does not mention a single Canadian athlete in the commercial. "The absolute ick every Canadian just felt. In 2026… what were you and your team thinking?" one Instagram user commented. "Girl, we are Canadian, we do NOT cheer for Team USA at winter sports, especially during times like these!!!" another user wrote.
Others cheered on the ad, with one commenter writing, "This is everything."
The professional dancer-turned-pop star grew up in Calgary, Canada's third-largest city. Coincidentally, her birthday, July 1st, is also Canada Day, which celebrates the day the British North America Act went into effect and created the modern country of Canada.
To learn more about all the Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls and to stay updated with ongoing coverage before, during, and after the games, visit people.com. Watch the Milan Cortina Olympics and Paralympics beginning February 6th on NBC and Peacock.
