A PHILIPPINE tennis player set to see action in the Asian Games is also facing the same situation as Andray Blatche, Gabe Norwood, and Jared Dillinger.
Fil-German netter Katharina Lenhert is also being asked by the Incheon Asian Games Organizing Committee (Iagoc) for additional documents to prove her residency in the Philippines.
But Philippine Lawn Tennis Association (Philta) secretary general Romeo Magat is confident that Lenhert will eventually be cleared by organizers.
Magat said they have submitted the additional documents to the Philippine Olympic Committee including passport, proof that she is a Philippine resident, and a certification from the Asian Tennis Federation.
“Walang problema kasi dual citizen siya. May bahay siya dito. I don’t see any problem,” Magat assured.
Lenhert is one of the top netters of the country and last competed for the Philippines in the Southeast Asian Tennis Championship last year.
The eligibility of Blatche, Norwood, and Dillinger is being questioned by the Iagoc, with organizers appearing bent on implementing a rule by Olympic Council of Asia regarding residency.
Among the four athletes, Blatche’s situation is the contentious one as he was just recently been naturalized by the Philippine government.
Under a provision in the OCA rule, a naturalized player will only be eligible if he has resided in the country for at least three years.
However, the POC argued that the OCA rule should be consistent with Olympic Charter, which applies the three-year residency rule only to naturalized players who have previously represented another country.
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