Just today Ebl President Mr Ives Aubry has replied to Nedju Buchlev’s mail about eligibility to play for Germany of Roy Welland. This is the mail Mr Aubry wrote to Buchlev:
April 9, 2014
Mr Buchlev
Some months ago the German Federation sent a request to the EBL about eligibility to play for Germany of Mr Roy Welland.
As usual the EBL Credential Committee asked official papers concerning the conditions of eligibility following our EBL Eligibility Code.
The EBL credential committee took a positive decision considering that Mr Roy Welland fulfill the conditions to play for Germany.
Following the Eligibility code Mr Welland cannot represent another country during a period of 10 years.
Regards
Yves Aubry
EBL President
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Many thanks to Jan van Cleeff – NewInBridge Editor- for his precious help
Technically the EBU may be correct, but it all seems absurd. Just recently we had Romanian and I think Polish doctors representing Germany, now Roy Welland, who as I recall captained a U.S. team at a recently Bridge Olympiad. Add in other members of U.S. teams like Pakistani Zia, Israelis Migry Campanille and Sam Lev, Augustin Madala the Argentine for Italy and lord knows how many others. And then there’s the Monaco team, made up of Norwegians and Italians as well as residents of the principality. I can appreciate why people like Mr. Buchlev feel slighted as Germans, when they can’t play for their country while foreigners can. Even if Welland – Auken are technically correct, seems to me that there’s something very unjust about the system. Not only does it make a joke of the notion of “national teams,” allowing foreigners-in-disguise to play for countries where they are not citizens (or where their connection is only tenuous or a matter of bridge convenience) would seem to damage the development of local bridge talent.
The idea of foreigners living and playing bridge in any country is in itself a fine one, but there’s a limit.