List of nationality transfers in sport
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of sports persons who have moved to compete for another country. Not included in this list are:
- Players who could choose to play for a new country after the dissolution of their former country. This mainly affected players from the former Soviet Union, such as Viktor Onopko, and the former Yugoslavia, such as Davor Šuker.
- Players who represented the country they moved to in childhood. Frequently, the home countries of such players are former colonies of their future countries (such as Patrick Vieira, born in Senegal but moved to France in childhood). Another example of such a player was Marcel Desailly, a Ghana-born player who was adopted in childhood by a French diplomat and raised in France.
- Players who could have chosen to represent more than one country due to their birthplace, parentage, ancestry (i.e., at least one grandparent), and/or residence. Some notable examples:
- Current England international Owen Hargreaves. Because he was a United Kingdom citizen born outside the country (specifically in Canada), he was eligible to play for any of the four Home Nations—England, Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales. His birth in Canada made him eligible for that country, and his residence in Germany would have made him eligible for that country also.
- Current German international Kevin Kurányi, who chose Germany (parentage) over Brazil (birthplace), Panama (parentage) and Hungary (ancestry).
- Former USA international Earnie Stewart, who chose the USA (parentage) over the Netherlands (birthplace and parentage).
- However, players who actually represented one country, either at junior or senior level, before representing a second country are included, even if they qualify by ancestry. For example:
- In football, Nigel Quashie represented England at U-21 level, but qualified for Scotland via his Scottish grandfather, and plays for the Scotland senior side.
- In rugby union, Diego Domínguez played for Argentina at senior level before playing for Italy, for which he qualified via a grandparent. Similarly, Clyde Rathbone represented South Africa at U-21 level before opting for Australia at senior level, and Isaac Boss represented New Zealand at U-19 level before choosing Ireland at senior level; both also qualified for their new countries via a grandparent.
[edit] Alpine skiing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Kilian Albrecht |  Switzerland |
 Bulgaria |
| Katrin Gutensohn |  Austria |
 Germany |
| Elfi Eder | Austria |
 Grenada |
| Marc Girardelli | Austria |
 Luxembourg |
| Sascha Gritsch |  Italy |
 Moldova |
| Urs Imboden | Switzerland |
Moldova |
| Christophe Roux | Switzerland |
Moldova |
| Christa Kinshofer | Germany |
 Netherlands |
- Reuters. "FIS to curb nation-swapping", Eurosport, 2 February 2007. Retrieved on 2007-02-17.
[edit] Archery
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Natalia Valeeva | Moldova |
Italy |
| Natalia Nasaridze |  Soviet Union |
 Turkey |
[edit] Athletics
[edit] Auto racing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Darryl O'Young |  Canada |
 Hong Kong |
| Rikky von Opel | Germany |
 Liechtenstein |
| Robert Doornbos | Netherlands |
 Monaco |
| Toulo de Graffenried |  France |
Switzerland |
| Andreas Zuber | Austria |
 United Arab Emirates |
[edit] Badminton
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Pi Hongyan |  China |
France |
| Xu Huaiwen | China |
Germany |
| Mia Audina |  Indonesia |
Netherlands |
| Yao Jie | China |
Netherlands |
| Xin Xu Bing | China |
 Spain |
[edit] Baseball
[edit] Basketball
[edit] Biathlon
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Natalya Sokolova |  Russia |
 Belarus |
| Olena Zubrilova |  Ukraine |
Belarus |
| Nathalie Santer-Bjørndalen | Italy |
.svg/22px-Flag_of_Belgium_(civil).svg.png){kind=small} Belgium |
| Alexei Aidarov | Belarus |
Ukraine |
[edit] Bobsleigh
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Lascelles Brown |  Jamaica |
Canada |
| César Gonzalez |  Dominican Republic |
Netherlands |
[edit] Boxing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Naoufel Ben Rabah |  Tunisia |
 Australia |
| Kostya Tszyu | Russia |
Australia |
| Dariusz Michalczewski |  Poland |
Germany |
| Miguel Dias |  Cape Verde |
Netherlands |
| Richel Hersisia |  Netherlands Antilles |
Netherlands |
| Hüsnü Koçabas | Turkey |
Netherlands |
| Orhan Delibas | Turkey |
Netherlands |
| Andrew Golota | Poland |
 United States |
[edit] Bridge
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| George Rosenkranz |  Hungary |
 Mexico |
| Fred Gitelman | Canada |
United States |
| Michael Rosenberg |  United Kingdom |
United States |
[edit] Canoeing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Kolganov |  Uzbekistan |
 Israel |
| Josefa Idem | Germany |
Italy |
| Michał Śliwiński | Ukraine |
Poland |
| Marcel Glavan |  Romania |
Spain |
[edit] Chess
[edit] Cricket
[edit] Cross-country skiing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Mikhail Botvinov | Russia |
Austria |
| Jan Jacob Verdenius | Netherlands |
 Norway |
| Johann Mühlegg | Germany |
Spain |
| Antonina Ordina | Soviet Union |
 Sweden |
[edit] Cue sports
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Stefan Mazrocis |  England |
Netherlands |
[edit] Curling
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Shari Leibbrandt-Demmon | Canada |
Netherlands |
| Lars Vågberg | Sweden |
Norway |
[edit] Cycling
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Igor Abakoumov | Belarus |
Belgium |
| Pino Cerami | Italy |
Belgium |
| Andrei Tchmil | Moldova |
Belgium |
| Jaanus Kuum | Soviet Union |
Norway |
| Steffen Wesemann | Germany |
Switzerland |
| Guido Trenti | Italy |
United States |
[edit] Diving
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Irina Lashko | Russia |
Australia |
[edit] Draughts
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Alexander Baljakin | Belarus |
Netherlands |
[edit] Equestrianism
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Jos Lansink | Netherlands |
Belgium |
| Samantha McIntosh | United Kingdom |
Bulgaria |
| Franke Sloothaak | Netherlands |
Germany |
| Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum | United States |
Germany |
| Jessica Kürten | United Kingdom |
 Ireland |
| Sven Rothenberger | Germany |
Netherlands |
| Susan de Kleine | Netherlands |
Netherlands Antilles |
| Eddy Stibbe | Netherlands |
Netherlands Antilles |
| Jean-Claude Vangeenberghe | Belgium |
Ukraine |
| Phillip Dutton | Australia |
United States |
[edit] Fencing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Luan Jujie | China |
Canada |
| Igor Tikhomirov | Russia |
Canada |
| Hajnalka Kiraly-Picot | Hungary |
France |
[edit] Field hockey
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Gaby Garreta |  Argentina |
Belgium |
| Vitali Kholopov | Belarus |
Belgium |
| Tom Green |  South Africa |
Canada |
| Marilyn Agliotti | South Africa |
Netherlands |
| Laurence Docherty |  Scotland |
Netherlands |
[edit] Figure skating
[edit] Football (soccer)
[edit] Freestyle skiing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Dale Begg-Smith | Canada |
Australia |
[edit] Gymnastics
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Agnes Keleti | Hungary |
Australia Israel |
| Anna Dogonadze |  Georgia |
Germany |
| Donghua Li | China |
Switzerland |
| Katia Pisetsky | Ukraine |
Israel |
| Anna Pobokova | Russia |
Netherlands |
| Nadia Comaneci | Romania |
United States |
[edit] Handball
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Andrej Klimovets | Belarus |
Germany |
| Oleg Velyky | Ukraine |
Germany |
| Bogdan Wenta | Poland |
Germany |
| Ivo Díaz |  Cuba |
Hungary |
| Carlos Reinaldo Pérez | Cuba |
Hungary |
| Vladimir Rivero | Cuba |
Hungary |
| Roberto Julián Duranona | Cuba |
 Iceland |
| Irina Pusic |  Croatia |
Netherlands |
| Katja Nyberg |  Finland |
Norway |
| Lena Olsson Rosenberg | Sweden |
Norway |
| Talant Dujshebaev | Soviet Union |
Russia Kyrgyzstan Spain |
| Julio Fis | Cuba |
Spain |
| Rolando Uríos | Cuba |
Spain |
[edit] Ice hockey
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Vladimir Rubes |  Czech Republic |
Australia |
| Jeremy Rebek | Canada |
Austria |
| Sean Selmser | Canada |
Austria |
| Mike Stewart | Canada |
Austria |
| Mark Szucs | Canada |
Austria |
| Sami Lipsonen | Finland |
Belgium |
| Viliam Chovanec |  Slovakia |
Croatia |
| Martin Ancicka | Czech Republic |
Germany |
| Tomáš Martinec | Czech Republic |
Germany |
| Omar Ennaffati | Canada |
Hungary |
| Roger Holéczy | United States |
Hungary |
| Rastislav Ondrejcik | Slovakia |
Hungary |
| Tamás Sille | Slovakia |
Hungary |
| Aaron Keller | Canada |
 Japan |
| Chris Yule | Canada |
Japan |
| Dave Livingston | United States |
Netherlands |
| John MacDonald | Canada |
Netherlands |
| Mattias Livf | Sweden |
Norway |
| Jonas Norgren | Sweden |
Norway |
| Erik Ryman | Sweden |
Norway |
| Jorma Virtanen | Finland |
Norway |
| Joakim Wiberg | Sweden |
Norway |
| Hans Persson | Sweden |
Norway |
| Lenny Eriksson | Sweden |
Norway |
| Mattias Holmstedt | Sweden |
Norway |
| Juha Kaunismäki | Finland |
Norway |
| Martin Voznik | Czech Republic |
Poland |
[edit] Judo
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Maria Pekli | Hungary |
Australia |
| Semir Pepic | Slovakia |
Australia |
| Faycal Bousbiat |  Algeria |
Canada |
| Davor Vlaskovac |  Bosnia and Herzegovina |
Germany |
| Ramaz Chochosvili | Ukraine |
Georgia |
| Jenny Gal | Netherlands |
Italy |
| Sandra Borderieux | France |
Spain |
| Ferrid Kheder | France |
Tunisia |
[edit] Luge
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Miroslav Zajonc |  Czechoslovakia |
Canada |
| Miroslav Zajonc | Canada |
United States |
[edit] Netball
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Leana de Bruin | South Africa |
 New Zealand |
| Irene van Dyk | South Africa |
New Zealand |
[edit] Rugby Union
[edit] Sailing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Mitch Booth | Australia |
Netherlands |
| Carolijn Brouwer | Netherlands |
Belgium |
[edit] Shooting
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Dorzhsuren Munkhbayar |  Mongolia |
Germany |
[edit] Short track speed skating
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Choi Min-Kyung |  South Korea |
France |
| Kim Hyo-Jung | South Korea |
United States |
[edit] Skeleton
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Dirk Matschenz | Germany |
Netherlands |
| Melanie Riedl | Germany |
Netherlands |
[edit] Softball
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Breedge Quinn | Ireland |
Germany |
[edit] Speed skating
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Emese Antal | Romania |
Austria |
| Emese Hunyady | Hungary |
Austria |
| Marnix ten Kortenaar | Netherlands |
Austria |
| Zsolt Zakarias | Romania |
Austria |
| Bart Veldkamp | Netherlands |
Belgium |
| André Vreugdenhil | Netherlands |
Belgium |
| Pim Berkhout | Netherlands |
Czech Republic |
| Maarten Blanken | Netherlands |
Czech Republic |
| Erik Bouwman | Netherlands |
Czech Republic |
| Hans van Helden | Netherlands |
France |
| Dino Gillarduzzi | Italy |
Germany |
| Zsolt Baló | Romania |
Hungary |
| Henriët Bosker | Netherlands |
Switzerland |
| Ronald Bosker | Netherlands |
Switzerland |
[edit] Squash
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Natalie Grainger | South Africa |
England United States |
| Peter Nicol | Scotland |
England |
| Vanessa Atkinson | England |
Netherlands |
| Annelize Naudé | South Africa |
Netherlands |
| Carla Khan | England |
 Pakistan |
[edit] Surfing
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Wendy Botha | South Africa |
Australia |
[edit] Swimming
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Klim | Poland |
Australia |
| Alena Popchanka | Belarus |
France |
| Sarah Poewe | South Africa |
Germany |
| Vadim Alexeev | Soviet Union |
Israel |
| Judith Haspel | Austria |
Israel |
| Dan Kutler | United States |
Israel |
| Mitja Zastrow | Germany |
Netherlands |
| Zoe Baker | United Kingdom |
New Zealand |
| Nina Zhivanevskaya | Russia |
Spain |
| Lenny Krayzelburg | Ukraine |
United States |
| Samantha Richter |  Zimbabwe |
New Zealand |
[edit] Table tennis
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Liu Song | China |
Argentina |
| Chen Weixing | China |
Austria |
| Li Qiangbing | China |
Austria |
| Liu Jia | China |
Austria |
| Feng Zhe | China |
Bulgaria |
| Zhang Peng | China |
Canada |
| Tan Ruiwu | China |
Croatia |
| Ju Lin | China |
Dominican Republic |
| Wu Xue | China |
Dominican Republic |
| Li Xue | China |
France |
| Xian Yi Fang | China |
France |
| Wu Jiaduo | China |
Germany |
| Yan Su | China |
Germany |
| Tan Wenling | China |
Italy |
| Yang Min | China |
Italy |
| Ni Xia Lian | China |
Luxembourg |
| Elena Timina | Russia |
Netherlands |
| Li Jiao | China |
Netherlands |
| Li Jie | China |
Netherlands |
| Wang Jianfeng | China |
Norway |
| Li Qian | China |
Poland |
| Wang Zeng Yi | China |
Poland |
| Xu Jie | China |
Poland |
| He Zhi Wen | China |
Spain |
| Jiao Yongli | China |
Spain |
| Shen Yanfei | China |
Spain |
| Wang Wei | China |
Spain |
| Gao Jun | China |
United States |
| Wang Chen | China |
United States |
[edit] Tennis
[edit] Triathlon
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Kate Allen | Australia |
Austria |
| Tracy Looze | Australia |
Netherlands |
[edit] Volleyball
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Irena Machovcak | Czechoslovakia |
Netherlands |
| Avital Selinger | Israel |
Netherlands |
| Chaïne Staelens | Belgium |
Netherlands |
| Kim Staelens | Belgium |
Netherlands |
| Irina Donets | Russia |
Netherlands |
[edit] Water polo
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Iván Pérez | Cuba |
Spain |
[edit] Weightlifting
| Name of athlete | From nation | To nation |
|---|---|---|
| Nikolay Pechalov | Bulgaria |
Croatia |
| Yoto Yotov | Bulgaria |
Croatia |
| Kakhi Kakhiashvili | .svg/22px-Flag_of_Georgia_(1990-2004).svg.png){kind=small} Georgia |
 Greece |
| Nader Sufyan Abbas | Bulgaria |
 Qatar |
| Said Saif Asaad | Bulgaria |
Qatar |
| Jaber Saeed Salem | Bulgaria |
Qatar |
| Halil Mutlu | Bulgaria |
Turkey |
| Naim Süleymanoğlu | Bulgaria |
Turkey |
[edit] References
- ^ Later moved back and played for South Africa after their readmission to Test cricket.
- ^ After debut match, FIFA disqualified Tiago Silva to play for Bulgaria
- ^ By then part of Portuguese Empire
- ^ Represented New Zealand at rugby league.
