AnotherPea
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,970 
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Post by AnotherPea on Feb 12, 2018 0:00:10 GMT
I strongly feel that competitors should represent only the country to which they are actual citizens. To the point that I'm having trouble fully enjoying events because I keep seeing Americans play on other countries' teams.
When I become King of the World I will insist that the Olympic Committee prevents this in the future.
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Post by meriannj on Feb 12, 2018 0:06:56 GMT
I was just saying that to my husband. Did you just watch the hockey girls story? It just seems like cheating of some sort. I know it's not but I just rubs me the wrong way.
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AnotherPea
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,970
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Post by AnotherPea on Feb 12, 2018 0:09:03 GMT
I was just saying that to my husband. Did you just watch the hockey girls story? It just seems like cheating of some sort. I know it's not but I just rubs me the wrong way. I did! lol But there's lots of others too. That story just happened to come on while I had Peas open on my laptop  |
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my3freaks
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,206
Location: NH girl living in Colorado
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Post by my3freaks on Feb 12, 2018 0:14:53 GMT
I am watching some events for the first time and just mentioned to my husband that I'm confused that people are competing for different countries than they're from. Well, I saw an American guy in ice dancing and a Russian in some kind of ski racing that were both competing for South Korea. What are the guidelines? I guess I've always just assumed the athletes compete for the countries that they are citizens of.
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QueenoftheSloths
Drama Llama
Member Since January 2004, 2,698 forum posts PeaNut Number: 122614 PeaBoard Title: StuckOnPeas
Posts: 5,955
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Post by QueenoftheSloths on Feb 12, 2018 0:17:45 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Feb 12, 2018 0:26:27 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country. Unfortunately this allows some pretty nebulous "citizens" - particularly as you do not have to give up your "real" citizenship. Some countries require ancestry - Ireland for instance will grant citizenship to anyone with grandparents who were Irish citizenship, which makes it at least nice that you have a connection. Many countries will just actively court athletes who are just not quite good enough to make it on the US team. |
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Post by wezee on Feb 12, 2018 0:26:58 GMT
I strongly feel that competitors should represent only the country to which they are actual citizens. To the point that I'm having trouble fully enjoying events because I keep seeing Americans play on other countries' teams. When I become King of the World I will insist that the Olympic Committee prevents this in the future. I get it. What do you think of college athletes from other countries training here? |
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AnotherPea
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,970
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Post by AnotherPea on Feb 12, 2018 0:28:22 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country. I don't think that is happening though. I'd love to be wrong. |
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AnotherPea
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,970
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Post by AnotherPea on Feb 12, 2018 0:29:43 GMT
I strongly feel that competitors should represent only the country to which they are actual citizens. To the point that I'm having trouble fully enjoying events because I keep seeing Americans play on other countries' teams. When I become King of the World I will insist that the Olympic Committee prevents this in the future. I get it. What do you think of college athletes from other countries training here? As long as they are really attending the college, I'm perfectly okay with it. If they're just on the team and not working towards a degree, it too rubs me the wrong way. |
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Post by Darcy Collins on Feb 12, 2018 0:31:42 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country. I don't think that is happening though. I'd love to be wrong. Oh they're citizens - it's just not your typical process. An article from the Rio games that talks about some of the athletes actively recruited: www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2016/08/why-some-olympians-compete-against-their-home-country/494648/I actually know someone who became a dual citizen specifically to compete in the Olympics. He knew he didn't have the times to qualify for the US team, so he obtained citizenship of his grandfather's country to compete in their Olympic trials. |
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lindas
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,488
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Post by lindas on Feb 12, 2018 0:33:03 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country. Not quite accurate. For instance, Mexico only requires that you have Mexican heritage in order to compete for them. |
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RosieKat
Drama Llama
PeaJect #12
Posts: 5,690
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Post by RosieKat on Feb 12, 2018 0:33:24 GMT
I understand that it's "legal" but I don't care for it.
On the other hand, I now have a scheme to make sure my son qualifies for 2028...
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Post by Darcy Collins on Feb 12, 2018 0:42:50 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country. Not quite accurate. For instance, Mexico only requires that you have Mexican heritage in order to compete for them. No they have to be citizens - some countries extend that readily to those who have heritage - others extend it readily to elite athletes no matter how tenuous the connection. More here: www.americanbar.org/publications/insights_on_law_andsociety/16/spring-2016/citizenship-and-the-olympics.html |
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Post by ScrapsontheRocks on Feb 12, 2018 2:36:18 GMT
Zola Budd. The hypocrisy made me sick at the time and when the on-track collision happened it all got dragged up again.
She had the right passport but she had no ties with Britain other than a (deceased?) family member. She spent no significant time there, before or after the Olympics. She returned to SA immediately after, has been there ever since and considers herself duped. Pfft.
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Post by annabella on Feb 12, 2018 2:56:35 GMT
I completely agree with you! The news highlighted Nigeria's first bob sled team and all 3 women had american accents. Then it came out that they were born in America to Nigerian parents. Sorry but that's cheating, there is an American team they could join if they were good enough. Actually I had the whole bob sled sport, seems like every year random people do it, last year American summer Olympians took up bob sled to be compete in the winter Olympics. What exactly is competitive about it anyway? Should countries without winter and snow even be allowed to create teams for sports that cant exist in their country?
Then there's a white american woman who is completing for Mexico because her husband is Mexican. She doesn't even have direct lineage!
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camcas
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,414
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Post by camcas on Feb 12, 2018 3:14:35 GMT
I strongly feel that competitors should represent only the country to which they are actual citizens. To the point that I'm having trouble fully enjoying events because I keep seeing Americans play on other countries' teams. When I become King of the World I will insist that the Olympic Committee prevents this in the future. King of the World...hahahahahahah! I think a lot of the Australian team would then be wiped out! Not enough snow for luge or bobsled in Oz Personally I really don’t care...just love watching sports! |
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Post by bc2ca on Feb 12, 2018 3:34:16 GMT
I don't have a problem with this. Many people have dual citizenship. If you can't make one team and are an international caliber athlete, why wouldn't you compete for the other country?
Buying citizenship and/or being recruited is a little dubious IMHO.
I also think that if the Olympics returned to an amateur only competition there would be less country shopping.
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Post by #notLauren on Feb 12, 2018 3:41:49 GMT
I agree with you OP. If you are an American, you do not belong on the Italian (or Greek or S. African or....) team .
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Post by auntkelly on Feb 12, 2018 4:28:52 GMT
It doesn’t bother me. It doesn’t hurt the USA and it helps some of the smaller countries.
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Post by busy on Feb 12, 2018 4:31:52 GMT
It’s not cheating. They are abiding by Olympic rules and these have been the rules for a very long time. This is nothing new.
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Post by bc2ca on Feb 12, 2018 4:50:40 GMT
I completely agree with you! The news highlighted Nigeria's first bob sled team and all 3 women had american accents. Then it came out that they were born in America to Nigerian parents. Sorry but that's cheating, there is an American team they could join if they were good enough. Actually I had the whole bob sled sport, seems like every year random people do it, last year American summer Olympians took up bob sled to be compete in the winter Olympics. What exactly is competitive about it anyway? Should countries without winter and snow even be allowed to create teams for sports that cant exist in their country? Then there's a white american woman who is completing for Mexico because her husband is Mexican. She doesn't even have direct lineage! She did obtain Mexican citizen through her marriage. |
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Post by Zee on Feb 12, 2018 5:05:21 GMT
To compete at the Olympics, you are required to be a citizen of the country you are representing. You are not required to have been born in that country. Unfortunately this allows some pretty nebulous "citizens" - particularly as you do not have to give up your "real" citizenship. Some countries require ancestry - Ireland for instance will grant citizenship to anyone with grandparents who were Irish citizenship, which makes it at least nice that you have a connection. Many countries will just actively court athletes who are just not quite good enough to make it on the US team. I didn't know that! What about great-grandparents? I might have to go back to great great grandparents, honestly. |
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Post by bc2ca on Feb 12, 2018 5:21:48 GMT
It isn't just US athletes either. Isabelle & Paul Duchesnay were the first athletes I became aware of doing this.
They came in third at the 1985 Canadian ice dancing championships. Tracy Wilson & Rob McCall won the event from 1982 through 1988. The Duchesnay's started competing for France in 1986 and went on to win multiple national championships there which qualified them to compete on the world stage to an extent that would have been unlikely if they'd stayed in Canada.
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Post by katlady on Feb 12, 2018 6:10:13 GMT
i don't really have a problem with it. It does seem a little odd while watching, but I feel like most of the Americans who compete for other countries would not be able to compete at all if they tried to make an American team.
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maryannscraps
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,948
Aug 28, 2017 12:51:28 GMT
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Post by maryannscraps on Feb 12, 2018 13:05:14 GMT
I have no problem with it at all. If you remember, the old rules about being an amateur were a huge problem with certain countries financially supporting the lives of their amateur athletes.
As long as they are following Olympic rules, I don't see an issue. I think it makes for a deeper field all around.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Aug 18, 2025 19:59:20 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2018 13:47:59 GMT
In most endeavors where money is involved (post-Olympic coaching jobs, sponsorships, etc.), people will find out what the rules/regulations are and then spend time and money on how to game them.
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Post by iamkristinl16 on Feb 12, 2018 13:48:15 GMT
I could see where it could make the competition greater for all, but I also see that it could take away from the chances of the people that actually live in that country and may not have the means to train in the way that someone from a different country could.
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Dalai Mama
Drama Llama
La Pea Boheme
Posts: 6,985
Jun 26, 2014 0:31:31 GMT
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Post by Dalai Mama on Feb 12, 2018 13:48:57 GMT
i don't really have a problem with it. It does seem a little odd while watching, but I feel like most of the Americans who compete for other countries would not be able to compete at all if they tried to make an American team. And, if they aren't able to qualify to make their home team, what are the chances of them medaling?
Honestly, my only issue with this is that there are athletes rightly from these countries for which they are competing being pushed out of Olympic spots. If nobody is being denied their rightful spot on the team (this would happen if nobody from that country would otherwise qualify), I don't really care.
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julieb
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Posts: 2,845
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Post by julieb on Feb 12, 2018 14:22:52 GMT
I was just saying that to my husband. Did you just watch the hockey girls story? It just seems like cheating of some sort. I know it's not but I just rubs me the wrong way. I didn't see this. Please fill me in, as I one of the players on the USA team is local to me and is a friend of a friend. Thanks! |
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Post by Darcy Collins on Feb 12, 2018 14:38:59 GMT
Unfortunately this allows some pretty nebulous "citizens" - particularly as you do not have to give up your "real" citizenship. Some countries require ancestry - Ireland for instance will grant citizenship to anyone with grandparents who were Irish citizenship, which makes it at least nice that you have a connection. Many countries will just actively court athletes who are just not quite good enough to make it on the US team. I didn't know that! What about great-grandparents? I might have to go back to great great grandparents, honestly. It depends on the country - not for Ireland. Citizenship through ancestry is just for grandparents for them. I think I read yesterday that the USA had 30+ athletes competing for other countries and Canada had 25ish. They were the most common countries and the country most likely to have citizens of another country competing for them was South Korea. |
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