Martina Navratilova was only 18 when she came from the Czech Republic and sought asylum in the USA. Her country was in political turmoil and she had defected from it. She left her family behind and was alone for a long time.
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The player regained it back in 2008 and got dual citizenship. The former player talked about the long and exhaustive process of getting her citizenship back.
When Navratilova gained her Czech citizenship back
Martina Navratilova talked about the experience of getting her Czech citizenship back in an old interview. She discussed the exhaustive process of getting it back. Martina said, “I waited for that. I don’t know why I waited,” mentioning the draining wait that she had to do.
Furthermore, she detailed the process and said, “You had to get so much paperwork done. I finally get it organized, and I send it. I don’t get anything back.” The player wondered and consequently, she had called them.
They did not get the paperwork so eventually; she started again. She said, “Two years later, I finally got to it. It happened that I got it after Obama became president, not under George W. Bush.”
WATCH THIS STORY: ‘Seems to Get Injured a Lot’ – Martina Navratilova Once Used Serena Williams’ Example to Talk About the ‘Fragmented’ Nature of Women’s Tennis.
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Former world no. 1 clarified, “People are saying I did it on purpose because I didn’t want to be an American anymore because of George W. Bush.” Martina laughed the misunderstanding off and said, “It had nothing to do with it. I just wasn’t organized enough to get all the paperwork done.”
The epitome of resilience- Martina Navratilova
Navratilova stayed stateless after defecting from her country. She received her US citizenship in 1981. The player paid heed only to her sport and ardently worked toward becoming the best tennis player, which she eventually did. She won 59 grand slam titles during her glorious career, out of which 18 were in the singles category.
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The player continues to stay in touch with sport by doing television commentary for various tours. Moreover, she likes to use Twitter’s platform effectively to express her point of view.