abeba aregawi will run for sweden

[doug5321]

eme news is reporting 3:56 for 1500 runner abeba aregawi will now be running for sweden, only 22 she could be a great one

[GDAWG]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

Wouldn't she have to wait three years for a nationality switch?

[dl]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

Well, at least there's a big Ethiopian diaspora in Sweden...

I lived in Sweden leading up to and during the '96 Olympics, and I can tell you that no one, perhaps other than her husband, was excited when Ludmila "Engquist" won the 100H, even though it was the country's only gold in the entire Games.

[gh]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

Wouldn't she have to wait three years for a nationality switch?

not if Ethiopia gives her a waiver

[Blues]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

Wouldn't she have to wait three years for a nationality switch?

She's resided in Stockholm since 2009 and is also a Swedish citizen now. I believe the new transfer of allegiance amendment that took effect in March makes her eligible to compete for Sweden. It's the part in black below.

(d) Acquisition of new Citizenship: if the athlete acquires a new Citizenship, he may represent his new Member in an International Competition under Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c), (f) or (g), but no earlier than three years following the date of acquisition of new Citizenship pursuant to the athlete’s application. This period of three years may be reduced or cancelled as set out below:

i) the period may be reduced to 12 months with the agreement of the Members concerned. The reduction shall be effective upon receipt by the IAAF Office of a written notification of the Members’ agreement;

ii) the period shall be cancelled if the athlete has completed three continuous years of Residence in the Country (or Territory) of his new membership immediately preceding the International Competition in question;

iii) the period may be reduced or cancelled in exceptional cases by the Council. An application for a reduction or cancellation must be submitted by the relevant Member in writing to the IAAF Office at least 30 days before the International Competition in question.

[GDAWG]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

Wasn't there a nationality issue with her earlier?

[preston]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

The IAAF needs to scrap the entire waver issue. Once an athlete gets citizenship from a country they should be afforded all the rights of a citizen of that country. The IAAF and other sports organizations force second-class citizenship onto other athletes by not allowing them to enjoy the full rights of their fellow countryman. Whether you compete for a country or not should only be determined by a naturalization department/ministry.

[mump boy]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

Wasn't there a nationality issue with her earlier?

I think she wanted to run for Sweden in London but ETH put their foot down

[gh]

Re: abeba aregawi will run for sweden

The IAAF needs to scrap the entire waver issue. Once an athlete gets citizenship from a country they should be afforded all the rights of a citizen of that country. The IAAF and other sports organizations force second-class citizenship onto other athletes by not allowing them to enjoy the full rights of their fellow countryman. Whether you compete for a country or not should only be determined by a naturalization department/ministry.

I pretty much agree, but I'd like to think that having some brakes on the program stops the Qatars of the world from simply going out and buying a whole new team every year.