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Post by koontz on Feb 12, 2018 15:04:27 GMT
I think it depends on the reasons for competing for another country. There are many talented speed skaters in the Netherlands. So many, that really talented skaters will never qualify for the Olympics because there are simply several even better Dutch speed skaters for every distance.
These athletes have worked incredibly hard for years and would easily beat many of the olympic skaters from other countries but will never be able to because there is a limited number of participants per country.
So I understand it when they decide to skate for another country and qualify for the tournament that way, and cheer for them when they do well.
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JustTricia
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,894 
Location: Indianapolis
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Post by JustTricia on Feb 12, 2018 16:19:28 GMT
I’m torn. I’m glad that they have the opportunity to compete, but if I trained my ass of for YEARS, spent thousands of dollars doing so, competed over the years in my country and ranked high enough to make the Olympics consistently, but then some nobody came along, got citizenship specifically for this, and bumped me off the team, I’d be pissed.
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Post by annabella on Feb 12, 2018 16:50:20 GMT
I’m torn. I’m glad that they have the opportunity to compete, but if I trained my ass of for YEARS, spent thousands of dollars doing so, competed over the years in my country and ranked high enough to make the Olympics consistently, but then some nobody came along, got citizenship specifically for this, and bumped me off the team, I’d be pissed. I don't think that has happened? The people I know of are playing for countries that didn't have a team. |
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tracylynn
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,905
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Post by tracylynn on Feb 12, 2018 17:09:36 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! But it's not cheating. They are sledding for their families country regardless of where they were born. And they followed the rules to do it. |
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tracylynn
Pearl Clutcher
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Post by tracylynn on Feb 12, 2018 17:11:02 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 . If they have citizenship, then they belong on whichever team they wish to compete on (or can qualify for). |
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Post by katlady on Feb 12, 2018 17:11:17 GMT
I’m torn. I’m glad that they have the opportunity to compete, but if I trained my ass of for YEARS, spent thousands of dollars doing so, competed over the years in my country and ranked high enough to make the Olympics consistently, but then some nobody came along, got citizenship specifically for this, and bumped me off the team, I’d be pissed. I don't think that has happened? The people I know of are playing for countries that didn't have a team. Many of the Americans that were pointed out in the opening ceremonies were marching for countries that don't even have a winter (Jamaica,Nigeria, Mexico, etc). So I don't think a lot of them are taking away spots from others. |
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Post by bc2ca on Feb 12, 2018 17:11:22 GMT
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. Another factor involved in so many competing for South Korea may be that, as host country, they automatically qualify for all team events and for one spot in each individual event. If South Korea didn't have a strong contender in an event, they were open to others coming in and allowing them to field a decent athlete/team. I know when Greece was hosting the Olympics a niece was approached about going out for the Greek women's soccer team. She is Canadian and could have qualified for dual citizenship through her dad. julieb , I'm assuming the hockey team story is about Hannah Brandt playing for the USA and her sister Marissa playing for South Korea. It is perfectly legitimate as Marissa was born in South Korea. |
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Post by Darcy Collins on Feb 12, 2018 17:15:16 GMT
I’m torn. I’m glad that they have the opportunity to compete, but if I trained my ass of for YEARS, spent thousands of dollars doing so, competed over the years in my country and ranked high enough to make the Olympics consistently, but then some nobody came along, got citizenship specifically for this, and bumped me off the team, I’d be pissed. I don't think that has happened? The people I know of are playing for countries that didn't have a team. It happens all the time in many sports. |
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Post by Darcy Collins on Feb 12, 2018 17:36:10 GMT
I don't think that has happened? The people I know of are playing for countries that didn't have a team. Many of the Americans that were pointed out in the opening ceremonies were marching for countries that don't even have a winter (Jamaica,Nigeria, Mexico, etc). So I don't think a lot of them are taking away spots from others. I think that's more true in the winter games than the summer. A lot of track and swimming Americans will try and qualify for other countries when they can't make the US team and absolutely push out native born and trained competitors. |
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Post by katlady on Feb 12, 2018 18:33:09 GMT
Many of the Americans that were pointed out in the opening ceremonies were marching for countries that don't even have a winter (Jamaica,Nigeria, Mexico, etc). So I don't think a lot of them are taking away spots from others. I think that's more true in the winter games than the summer. A lot of track and swimming Americans will try and qualify for other countries when they can't make the US team and absolutely push out native born and trained competitors. Yes, I guess I am more focused on the Winter Games right now. Didn’t even think about the Summer Games. But I agree about swimming and track. |
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JustTricia
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,894
Location: Indianapolis
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Post by JustTricia on Feb 12, 2018 18:38:06 GMT
A quick Google search showed two gymnasts competed for Belarus in 2016 and had no family connection, so not even a “my grandparents are from there”.
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Post by Mel on Feb 12, 2018 19:33:52 GMT
One of the figure skating pairs was like that... she was born here to Korean parents, and he was born here to American parents but became a citizen of S. Korea in 2015
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Post by koontz on Feb 13, 2018 11:01:28 GMT
I’m torn. I’m glad that they have the opportunity to compete, but if I trained my ass of for YEARS, spent thousands of dollars doing so, competed over the years in my country and ranked high enough to make the Olympics consistently, but then some nobody came along, got citizenship specifically for this, and bumped me off the team, I’d be pissed. Actually, I did not think of that, and you do have a point. Now I`m torn too  . Perhaps they should have standardised qualification targets before an Olympic tournament, so the best athletes compete irrespective of their nationality but that wouldn`t be in the spirit of the Olympics. |
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Post by Linda on Feb 13, 2018 11:55:52 GMT
citizenship is complicated - and every country has its own rules on who is automatically a citizen and who can become one.
I'm a dual national (UK and US) - and if I were an athlete (highly unlikely), there's no reason why it would be ok for me to compete for one country and not ok if I picked the other.
My children are ALSO dual nationals even though they were born in the US and have never been to the UK. Just as I inherited my US citizenship from my mother, they inherited my UK citizenship from me. They can't pass it down to their children however.
I figure if they're following Olympic rules, then that's fine. If there's an issue, then I'm sure the rules will be changed at some point.
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. Perhaps they should have standardised qualification targets before an Olympic tournament, so the best athletes compete irrespective of their nationality but that wouldn`t be in the spirit of the Olympics. 
