Why wouldn’t Canada want a talented, young athlete as one of its citizens?

Canada is a supporter of athletes and sport. Despite many national sports organizations in this country being in need of an overhaul, assessment or investigation, Canada enjoys its time on the podium.

The montages of our athletes clad in red and white with shiny hardware adorning their necks is always special. I get goosebumps every time I watch our athletes on the podium, and I was a mess watching the medal ceremony in Tokyo when the Canadian women’s soccer team, led by Christine Sinclair, won gold. The tears of elation shining in their eyes rendered me a mess, sniffling into my hijab.

The team spoke constantly about their experiences and pride representing Canada. They grew up in different cities and towns across the country. (And at a time when women’s and girls’ soccer was not funded or respected, which has thankfully shown signs of change.)

All of them except Janine Beckie. Beckie is one of the leaders of the team and an outspoken advocate for the game. She was born and raised in Colorado and even represented the USA at a youth level. But she was offered the chance to play for Canada, the birth country of her parents and her siblings.

Beckie has been a key component of the success of the team. Canada offering her a spot to play has benefited the country and the sport.

Despite this shining example (and others) of expanding citizenship for sports, the rules in Canada have changed. The government amended laws in 2009 and 2015 so that those previously eligible for naturalization and Canadian citizenship could not extend beyond a second generation. 

So where is the line drawn of using citizenship as currency in the sports world, either for favouritism or exclusion?

Last week, 16-year-old surfing phenom Erin Brooks, who was born and raised in the U.S., was denied her request for Canadian citizenship. Brooks has represented Canada before and done stunningly well on the surfing scene. According to a representative from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Brooks was denied because she did not meet the requirements.

“The applicant is not stateless, has not experienced special or unusual hardship or provided services of an exceptional value to Canada which warrants a discretionary grant of Canadian citizenship,” IRCC said in a letter. 

Brooks was born in Texas and moved to Hawaii when she was nine and began to surf. She is someone with spectacular potential and is expected to win a medal at the Olympics, but her surfing skill does not seem to impress the feds. 

Her father has Canadian citizenship and the family says it is based in Tofino, B.C., on the western edge of Vancouver Island where the Canadian surfing scene thrives. But they also travel more than 10 months of the year so that Brooks can compete.

Brooks had been allowed to compete for Canada while her citizenship application went through the usual channels, but this past July the International Surfing Association (ISA) announced she could no longer do that. That decision caught the Canadian federation and the family by surprise. The ISA ruled that competing as a Canadian did not meet the requirements despite assurances by the Canadian Olympics Committee (COC) and Surfing Canada that the citizenship process was underway. 

As much as I feel that borders are man-made and the rules are not applied evenly in so many processes, I can’t help feeling sympathetic to this young athlete. That being said, so many people are waiting to receive permanent residency in Canada because of a severe backlog.

No, Brooks is not seeking asylum, but if there is precedent for her receiving an opportunity to represent Canada, why wouldn’t we want that? Canada can make waves in one of the newest sports! Isn’t that what should happen? 

This also brings up an interesting point about how we use or capitalize on citizenship in the spirit of the Olympics. I read the work of Ayelet Sachar, a legal scholar who has examined citizenship and sports.

Sachar’s research looks at the traditional model of citizenship through a principle of community membership, personal identity, loyalty and deep historical connection — which the Olympics have traditionally represented through many nations. But it may seem as if citizenship is now being used for something less sincere. She argues that handing out citizenship (not through asylum or refugee process) is the opposite of the magic that the Olympics is founded on. 

Should we care about how an athlete obtains a passport? Or what the process is? How do we determine what citizenship is, particularly with the current state of the world in such chaos.

Is this about reaching the podium or a connection to lineage? Do Canadians have a right to judge? 

What we do know is that there is an uber-talented young woman with potential who is not being allowed to hang 10 because of rules that can’t be bent. 

It’s difficult to argue that someone is not connected to Canada if they have familial connections and history to the country. Her grandfather was born and raised in Canada and her father, Jeff, is a dual citizen, born in the U.S. and granted Canadian citizenship through naturalization.

Jeff has said Erin wants to surf for Canada, “because she wants to represent her family and her heritage.” The Brooks family intends to challenge the ruling in federal court. 

Which begs the question, why is she so keen on fighting to represent Canada? Particularly when Italy and Germany are also interested in her and she has connections to those countries as well. Perhaps Brooks wants to set trends and make her mark on a sport that might grow exponentially. Or is it the potential for endorsements?

Canada has never won a World Surfing League event, which makes this all the more enticing but also confusing. Should Brooks sail to the front of the line for citizenship? Is her ability one that should grant her deference? If Brooks couldn’t compete without Canadian citizenship, that would be worrisome. I do not believe that is the case. 

I admit her passion and determination for representing Canada might baffle me a little. I wonder if it is really worth it? I also appreciate her vigour.

Her application could possibly be considered a compassionate case because the family was based in Maui until their home burned down in the fires that swept the islands this summer. In addition to that devastating blow, Brooks’ mother is battling cancer. There might be other options for the family and Canada is not their only resort, but it is their wish and Brooks’ dream. A dream that can be crushed by Marc Miller, the Immigration Minister, with whom complete discretion lies on this matter. 

Despite the bad news of the CIC decision, Brooks went on to win an event in Brazil and has her hopes on an Olympic dream. One can’t help but wonder if all the reaching for maple leaves might complicate or clog the waters she is supposed to be surfing.