Guatemalan-born, DACA recipient Luis Grijalva finally approved for Olympic Games visaliatimesdelta.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from visaliatimesdelta.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
From Fairfield High School track star to Olympian: Luis Grijalva s bumpy road to Tokyo
Grijalva had faced deportation if he traveled out of the U.S. Share Updated: 8:09 PM PDT Aug 3, 2021
Grijalva had faced deportation if he traveled out of the U.S. Share Updated: 8:09 PM PDT Aug 3, 2021
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Show Transcript OR F LUIS, THE RACE BEGAN WELL BEFORE HE HIT THIS TRACK. WITH COACHES. HE WAS A RIDICULOUSLY TALENTED RUNNER. DEFINITELY THAT FIRST YR,EA WE DID NOT KNOW HE WAS GOING TO BE QUITE THAT GOOD. RMMOOATES. WE KNOW HOW HARD HE HAS WORKED AND WE ARE PROUD OF HIM. FRIENDS ARE CHEERING HIM ON. HE WAS JUST RUNNING AND WINNING. HE BECAME THE FIRST ATGUEMALAN TO MAKE IT TO AN OLYMPIC FINAL TUESDAY MORNING. BEFORE HE BECAME AN OLYMPIAN, HE WAS A STUDENT HEER WHO HAD BIG DREAMS AND THEAL TENT TO BACK IT UP. BUT HIS PATH TO TOKYO HAD ITS OBSTACLES. I KNEW IT WAS GOING TO BE HARD WITH ALL OF THESE POLITICS GOING ON. ERIC SAYS LS
When Luis Grijalva crossed the finish line at the NCAA track and field championships last month, he knew he could reach his Olympic dream.
But first, immigration officials would have to agree to let the 22-year-old runner travel outside the United States and come back to the country he calls home.
Grijalva is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient who will travel to Japan on Friday to represent Guatemala in the 5,000-meter race at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He and his lawyer spent several weeks petitioning US Citizenship and Immigration Services for a special permit known as advance parole that allows DACA recipients to reenter the US after traveling abroad.
July 27, 2021
Northern Arizona Luis Grijalva was unsure he would be able to compete in the Tokyo Olympics even though he qualified for them. Because DACA recipients who leave the country typically aren’t allowed to return, the Guatemala native wasn’t sure he could participate. (Photo by Shane Bevel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
PHOENIX – Luis Grijalva could see the finish line. He just wasn’t sure he could reach it.
That changed Monday when the former Northern Arizona runner, who had qualified for the Olympics in July, learned he had been approved to travel to Tokyo in time for the preliminary 5,000-meter race Aug. 3. Because DACA recipients who leave the country typically aren’t allowed to return, the Guatemala native wasn’t sure he could participate.
Northern Arizona Luis Grijalva was unsure he would be able to compete in the Tokyo Olympics even though he qualified for them. Because DACA recipients who leave the country typically aren’t allowed to return, the Guatemala native wasn’t sure he could participate. (Photo by Shane Bevel/NCAA Photos)
PHOENIX – Luis Grijalva could see the finish line. He just wasn’t sure he could reach it.
That changed Monday when the former Northern Arizona runner, who had qualified for the Olympics in July, learned he had been approved to travel to Tokyo in time for the preliminary 5,000-meter race Aug. 3. Because DACA recipients who leave the country typically aren’t allowed to return, the Guatemala native wasn’t sure he could participate.