Eleventh Global Studies Conference

Abstract

The political implications of sports have stretched from their inception as a footrace in Ancient Greece to the battles of the Roman Colosseum to today. Because of the progression of society and the concept of what makes up a nation-state, participation on an international stage has led athletes of all types to seek citizenship elsewhere for the opportunity to compete, sometimes in nations to which they lack a tangible connection. Is citizenship, an identity so often tied to place of birth, a parent’s citizenship, or ethnicity, able to be discarded so inconsequentially? Is a medal – or even just the opportunity to compete – worth giving up such a fundamental part of an individual’s identity? Globalization’s impact on the movement of people across international borders is unlike any other time in history, and its effect is unparalleled. My paper analyzes cases of all types, from the status of refugees and economic migrants to that of athletes blocked by a “talent bottleneck” in their home countries or a case in which only one partner holds a passport of the nation hoping to be represented, as well as the wider question of ethics involved in “country hopping” to compete.