Overview
- Officials said the team added ASL hand signs, including "ICE out" and, as reported by local media, "unity," "love," and "resist," which departed from its approved sketch.
- The modifications were discovered only after judging concluded, following several complaints to organizers.
- Some hand elements were removed on Jan. 19 before the entire sculpture was taken down and the entry disqualified, a delay organizers later said was a mistake.
- Team captain Dusty Thune said the changes were not planned and were driven by a poorly packed, debris-filled block that forced a redesign on Jan. 14.
- Coverage noted the redesign came about a week after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis, and Canada won the 16-team event as the U.S. did not place.