A 16-year-old professional athlete was denied Canadian citizenship
The girl wanted to represent the country at the Olympics.
A 16-year-old surf prodigy Erin Brooks has been denied Canadian citizenship. The girl was born in Texas, USA, and her father has dual American-Canadian citizenship — he was born and raised in Montreal. The family hoped that this was enough to obtain documents, but the IRCC decided otherwise.
The story was publicized because of the athlete's intentions: she wanted to represent Canada at the Olympic Games in 2024 in Paris. Previously, the girl had already won a silver medal at the World Surfing Games in El Salvador in June. Brooks was already unable to go to the Pan American Games in Chile last week due to a delay in her paperwork, and now her last chance to qualify for the Olympics is in Puerto Rico in February.
At the Olympic Surfing Games, each country can be represented by a maximum of two athletes — regardless of gender.
Under Canadian immigration law, the second generation born abroad is no longer unconditionally eligible for a Canadian passport. This was finally outlined by amendments back in 2009. A letter from the ministry, obtained by Brooks, states the following:
"The application is refused on the basis that 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."
The surfer's father, Jeff Brooks, plans to appeal the decision in Federal Court.
"It would definitely be a huge disappointment to miss out on the chance of the Olympics, especially after working so hard. I mean she's the No. 2-seeded international surfer right now in the United States," he commented.
The girl herself also intends to fight to obtain documents. After the family's home in Hawaii burned down, they permanently reside in Tofino, British Columbia. Brooks was supported by Surf Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee, represented by CEO David Shoemaker:
"She's been representing Canada on the world stage, winning championships. Her grandparents are Canadian. Her father is a dual citizen. And since their home in the U.S. burned to the ground, they've been calling Tofino home."
Brooks had actually competed for Canada since March 2022. She received a permit from the International Surfing Association, but it was revoked in June. To continue representing the country the girl needs to obtain Canadian citizenship. Brooks' father told the media that representatives of some other countries interested in inviting the surfer have already contacted the family.
