Citizenship delay to cost Ciobanu place at Euros

One of Ireland’s best long-distance runners has all but given up hope of competing at the European Championships in Zurich in two weeks’ time as his application for Irish citizenship has yet to come through.

Moldovan-born Sergiu Ciobanu, who has lived in Ireland for the last eight years, secured the qualifying time for the marathon alongside Paul Pollock (Annadale Striders AC), Sean Hehir (Rathfarnham WASF AC), and Thomas Frazer (St Malachy’s AC).

“I’ll be very disappointed to miss the championships. Normally it takes six months for the application to go through, and I applied back in February and the six months has elapsed. I was sure I would get it. I was talking to my coach Jerry [Kiernan] and he said, ‘I’ll be on TV for the championships and I will talk about you Sergiu when you are in Zurich’, and I was so excited. It’s hard to believe I won’t be there. I cannot believe I won’t make it. I tried so hard to make the time; in April I went to Rotterdam and I was sick going there, I picked up a cold a few days before the race so I dropped out. But three weeks later I went to Hamburg and ran 2:17, which would be the second fastest if I am on the Irish team. Paul [Pollock] has 2:16.

“Moldova is not involved in this, it’s nothing to do with them,” he continued. “They asked the IAAF if I can run for Ireland, I was told ‘as long as I have the citizenship I’ll be eligible to run for Ireland’. I don’t know what is wrong, it’s no one’s fault but everything is happening so slowly. I have been here eight years and always ran in the National Championships for many years.

“I feel that I belong here now. It will happen eventually and I will get the citizenship, but it will probably be September and that will be too late. To make the European Champs is like making the Olympics because let’s not forget that the European marathon only comes every four years.

“I’ll hopefully be around in four years but why not now and again in four years? I’m waiting for my solicitor to call me with the news. It’s two weeks to the Euros though, I don’t think I’ll get it now. I don’t see it happening.

“I was so positive up until a week ago; even after the National Championships I was positive but two weeks have passed and nothing has happened. So now I will look forward to the Dublin marathon and the crosscountry season.”