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Trump's slurred speech at ‘Champion of Coal’ event sparks health concerns: ‘hands look extra swollen’

Trump has raised health speculation after slurring his words during a speech at the ceremony where he was crowned the “Undisputed Champion of Coal.”

Published on: Feb 13, 2026 1:44 AM IST
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President Donald Trump has sparked fresh health concerns after appearing to slur his words during a White House speech at an event that was celebrating him as the “Undisputed Champion of Coal.”

Trump has raised health speculation after slurring his words during a speech at the ceremony where he was crowned the “Undisputed Champion of Coal.” (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP)
Trump has raised health speculation after slurring his words during a speech at the ceremony where he was crowned the “Undisputed Champion of Coal.” (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP)

Trump’s delivery briefly became unintelligible during the speech for some seconds.

Although the White House has frequently defended the president's health, claiming he is still fit and capable, social media usersclaim the most recent event is part of a larger trend of odd public appearances and inconsistent excuses that have fueled discussion about his suitability for office.

Read more: Is Trump okay? Air Force One turning around sparks fears about POTUS' health

“Undithpuut champion of coal”

Video clips of Trump's speech show him beginning a sentence before becoming incoherent for several seconds. In the short stretch, Trump mumbled and appeared to lose his train of thought momentarily.

Trump reads "Undisputed Champion of Coal" and falters. At the White House, he said, “And I'm proud to officially name the undithpuut...” He then paused for a second and continued, “When did this come out, Mr Speaker?”

He received the Washington Coal Club's 'Undisputed Champion of Coal' award during the ceremony in recognition of his work to reduce federal greenhouse gas regulations.

He said, “The undisputed champion of beautiful, clean coal. We have to proceed always -- I don't use the word coal, you know, it needs a PR job because it has had a bad reputation for a while.”

He further praised his own initiatives and added, “It has to be preceded by beautiful, clean coal, OK? We're cleaning it up very good.”

Read more: Trump appears to fall asleep during meeting, sparks 'fitness' concerns

Social media reacts

This is not the first time Trump has sparked rumors around his alleged deteriorating health with his slurred speech at events. It was especially challenging to follow his long address at last month's World Economic Forum in Davos earlier in January.

Additionally, there have been times when he looked to nod off in public or stumbled when speaking to the media. Trump showed significant bewilderment throughout the Davos speech, at one point confusing Iceland with Greenland.

Speculation around his health has been ongoing since the President took office, and social media users are not far from guessing.

A page on X named @KremlinTrolls claimed that, “Trump hasn't been golfing since January 18th. Because he is unable, due to his failing health.”

Another X user posted a Getty image and caption from Saul Loeb talking about his infamous hand condition during an event on February 12 and wrote, “Trump's black hand was looking extra gnarly and swollen today.”

However, none of these claims has been verified independently by HT.com.

  • Shirin Gupta
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Shirin Gupta

    Shirin Gupta is a content producer with the Hindustan Times. She covers everything between politics, entertainment and sports at the US desk. Shirin got interested in political journalism during her time as a web editor at her college newspaper NCC News in Syracuse when she first started seeing the effects of national politics in life of her fellow colleagues. Shirin has worked on a wide range of fast-moving and developing stories locally when she was at NCC editing accessible reports for the audience. Her current role requires her to track real-time updates, verify information and present balanced coverage across diverse beats. Covering US politics from an international newsroom perspective has further deepened her understanding of how domestic decisions can have far-reaching global consequences. With a keen interest in international affairs, Shirin continues to build her expertise in geopolitics, policy shifts, and cross-border developments. She aims to learn and evolve her reporting in matters of geopolitics and international issues. Outside the newsroom Shirin writes about books and music for her personal blog. She is an avid consumer of pop culture and reveres literature.Read More

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