"Christina Carreira made the trip across the Blue Water Bridge separating Port Huron in southeast Michigan from the Canadian town of Sarnia so many times that border officials came to know her by name. They would ask how practice went. How she fared in her latest competition. What was next for Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko, her longtime ice dance partner, and whether they'd heard any news as the Milan Cortina Olympics approached."
"The rules of the International Olympic Committee state that athletes must be citizens of the nation they represent. Many countries are accommodating to foreign talent, offering expedited citizenship through a practice known as sports migration. That is rarely the case in the U.S., where athletes typically must endure the yearslong process like anyone else. In fact, the inability of pairs skater Alisa Efimova to get her passport in time"
"It was a blow to the U.S. squad, too. Efimova and her partner, Misha Mitrofanov, are the reigning pairs national champions. We were waiting for a last-minute miracle to make it happen, Mitrofanov says. Carreira didn't want to leave her citizenship situation to a miracle. And she didn't want anybody reviewing her application to have any questions about it. So, rather than staying in Canada for a few days at a time,"
Christina Carreira commuted frequently across the Blue Water Bridge between Port Huron, Michigan, and Sarnia, Ontario, for training and competitions. Border officials became familiar with her and often inquired about practice, results, and Olympic news. Carreira acquired U.S. citizenship in November, a development that cleared the way for Olympic eligibility under IOC rules requiring athletes to be citizens of the nation they represent. Many countries expedite citizenship for athletes through sports migration, but the United States seldom does. The prolonged process has cost other skaters opportunities, and Carreira worked to avoid leaving her status to chance.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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