Smart trick – Team Rynkeby riders change citizenship to be able to return home to Paris

‘Team Rynkeby Faroe Islands’ becomes ‘Team Rynkeby Iles Faroes’, after all participants have been granted French citizenship in order to “go home” to Paris this summer.

On Thursday evening, the entire Faroese Team Rynkeby team gathered at the French consulate in Torshavn to take the French citizenship test.

After dialogue with the French Honorary Consul in the Faroe Islands, the team has decided to apply for temporary French citizenship – the so-called ‘nationalité provisoire en république française’.

This means that for a maximum period of five years, the participants formally change their nationality from Faroese to French.

This allows the team to circumvent any corona-related travel restrictions because the participants formally allowed to “go home” to Paris.

– I sometimes cycle with the French consul, and it was he who told me that it could be a possibility. And after a short consultation on the team, we agreed that citizenship is not so important either, if it means that we can come to Paris this summer, says Rúni Noël (formerly Juul, ed.), Team Manager at the new ‘Team Rynkeby Iles Faroes’.

Small gap in the plan

However, work was to be done to get ready for the citizenship test.

– We have not trained very much on the bike this year, because we have spent most evenings this winter to prepare for the test – but luckily it went as it should for most of us – only our service manager is going for the re-examination, says Rúni Christmas.

After the test on Thursday, however, the team captain has discovered a small gap in the plan.

– Now we are French citizens. So we actually do not quite know if we can come back to the Faroe Islands again. But I wonder if it will work out? Right now, we are just looking forward to being able to come to Paris this summer, he says.

Can be used elsewhere

The Faroese trick comes as a bit of a surprise to Team Rynkeby Foundation’s director, Carl Erik Dalbøge

– We have talked for a long time that it could be interesting to get a French team involved in the project. But I had not in my wildest imagination imagined that it would already be this summer, he says.

Carl Erik Dalbøge does not deny, however, that the trick can be used elsewhere.

-I am completely open to that. If the participants on the individual teams can agree to apply for French citizenship, then I would like to drive to Paris with 59 French teams this summer, says Carl Erik Dalbøge.

The new French ‘Team Rynkeby Iles Faroes’ jersey has just gone on sale and will be sold for the rest of the day on April 1, 2021.

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