“I definitely feel as American as I am Chinese. I am American when I am in the United States and I am Chinese when I am in China. I have been very honest about my gratitude to both countries for making me who I am. I don’t feel like I benefit from One or the other because they’ve been incredibly supportive, they understand my job is to use sport as a unifying force.” Eileen Joeafter winning the host country’s Olympic gold medal in the grand air category in figure skating.
The young athlete has captured international attention not only for her undoubted athletic skills, but also for her history, born and raised in San Francisco, for which she competed until she was 15 for the United States, but since 2019 has represented the nation of the Winter Fair. This not only goes against the geopolitical tension between the two countries, but also reflects China’s desire to stand out in this sports festival. Asian giant does not allow dual citizenship but 2022 Beijing Olympics They seem to be the exception to the rule.
the middle Axios She mentioned that Elaine Gu is just one of 30 foreign-born athletes who compete under the Chinese flag. This government relaxed strict citizenship laws in an effort to win medals and project a stronger image at the Olympics. At times, the nation has chosen to be pragmatic in sports where it has historically fallen behind, including football.
According to Reuters, 10 of the 25 players on the men’s ice hockey team competing for China are American or Canadian athletes, according to USA Today, 17; While in the women’s section, 11 of the 23 players from the Asian country were naturalized. According to Reuters, some of them, such as American Jake Chelios, son of NHL Hall of Famer Chris Chelios, do not have “obvious Chinese ancestry”.
USA Today claimed that at least on the men’s team, players were able to retain their citizenship.
“I told China I would never give up my (US) passport, and they told me it was fine,” said goalkeeper Jeremy Smith, a Michigan native who is eligible to represent China due to a season with Chinese club Kunlun Red Star.
Joe did not say whether he renounced his US citizenship, and the location of the Olympics, which he previously said he did, was changed on February 10, adding to the mystery, VOA reported.
If the skater is adopted as a national icon, then at the opposite pole is the Chinese skater Zhou Yi, who confirmed that she renounced her American citizenship, but after suffering several times in her performances, she received severe criticism because of it. Olympic role, for Mandarin level and for his family origins.
China may have relaxed its citizenship rules on paper, but it still required some loyalty, especially in one of the highest points of tension with the United States, hockey players used their Chinese names and at least one player was not known. He was allowed to speak. English description in an interview, Axios.
The host country holds, as of Thursday, February 17, a total of 13 medals, according to the official website of Olympic GamesGu is the only dual-national to win two medals (one gold and one silver) in her first Olympics.
Beijing 2022 is the antithesis of what was the 2016 summer duel in Rio de Janeiro, where national talent helped sponsor other countries. data The New York Timesrecovered before interested in tradenoted that at least 44 Chinese-born table tennis players have competed in 22 countries, including China.
Many of these athletes, such as player Han Ying, adopted another nationality to allow them to get to the Olympics, because in China they did not have the opportunity or their best moment had already passed.
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