Elise Romba is not the first squash player in history to switch nationalities and she most certainly won't be the last — particularly in the next year or two.
By formally changing the flag next to her name from the French tricolore to the colours of Portugal, Romba joins Peter Nicol, Natalie Grinham, and Mohamed and Marwan ElShorbagy on the list of players who have swapped their country of birth for a new national tracksuit.
The reasons behind Romba's decision are obvious. With the 2027 European Games and LA28 fast approaching, it's now crunch time for players who are looking for any means to be part of squash's long-cherished Olympic debut and the Continental Games qualifying competitions.
Used wisely, a new passport could act as a fast-track ticket.
Announced in February, squash's qualification system for LA28 limits places in the 16-player draw to a maximum of two athletes per nation. For most, it'll be just one. For those unlikely to become their nation's no.1 player by the cut-off date of 22 May 2028, switching allegiance to a 'weaker' nation is tempting.
Greg Lobban, who has changed allegiance from Scotland to Australia, was the first big name player to publicly announce his intentions. As revealed by Squash Player magazine, world no.47 Mohamed ElSherbini is in the process of switching from Egypt to Slovenia, and Mazen Gamal is changing from Egypt to Lithuania.
What is Romba's response to those who dislike the expediency of all this flag switching?
"I agree with them!" she tells us. "A lot of people have asked me, 'How did you change nationality?' I explain that my dad was born in Portugal and holds dual nationality, so it's by birth.
"To me, if it's through marriage, through your parents or if you have lived in the country a long time, that is very different from people who have asked lots of other countries if they can join them, and have no history with those countries. This is crazy.
"I'm against those people, but I'm OK with people who lived for long time in the country, like the ElShorbagy brothers. To me, that's different, because you know the country and the culture. To me, there are two different sides. One, I agree and the other I disagree."
Lyon-born Romba has found her path into the French national team blocked by Melissa Alves, Marie Stephan, Enora Villard, and the scintillating young talent Lauren Baltayan in recent years.
But an alternative route offered itself because her father Sylvain was born in Portugal before moving to France aged seven. She has held dual nationality for five years.
Elise's youngest sister, 20-year-old Celine, already switched nationality from France to Portugal several years ago. For Elise, the decision to follow suit was pragmatic and follows several years of conversations with the Portuguese federation.
"I choose to represent Portugal now because I know it gives me more opportunities," says the 28-year-old.
"It's like a new breath, because I know there is space for me.
"I didn't have a lot of opportunities for the French team for a few years. I had some good results and I didn't understand why they didn't choose me. The politics in France is [to prioritise] the young people."
Romba seized her first opportunity as a Portuguese team member with both hands. Making her debut at the recent European Team Championships in Amsterdam, she slotted straight in at no.1 and spearheaded Portugal to bronze medals in Division 2, the women's team's best ever finish at the event.
One imagines the conversation with Portugal's displaced women's no.1, Catarina Nunes, might have been difficult?
"I knew it would be not easy for her, but we had many conversations about it," Romba reveals.
"I can see if I'd chosen stay in France, it would be better for her, but she's OK now the team is stronger. For me, I have to defend my chance to be the no.1. We can push each other in the right way. I think it can increase our level, both of us."
On the experience of making her Portuguese debut at the European Team Championships at the Frans Otten Stadion, she said: "It was very hard for me at the beginning. Mentally, it was tough. But the team was very nice with me. It was easy to play my best for them.
"All the Portugal staff were very kind. They said, 'Thank you for being here for us.' But I said, 'No, thank you! It's 50/50.' Winning a medal in my first moment with them... that was very, very good."
The day after we speak, Romba was set to move from the French national training centre in Aix-en-Provence back to her hometown Lyon to train with her father. She will not relocate to Portugal but will visit regularly for training camps and to coach juniors.
Romba's PSA world ranking, which peaked at no.89 two years ago, has since drifted to no.141. She is aware that to qualify for next summer's European Games in Istanbul, she will probably need to reach the top 100 by the cut-off date of 19 April 2027.
"It will be tough but I think I can make it," she states. "The plan is to train harder and maybe smarter. I will also choose the right PSAs to play in. The level has risen a lot so you need to be smarter with which tournaments to enter. You can have a good result in one tournament and rise 10 or 20 places."
Although her change of citizenship was clearly related to how the Olympics has changed the international squash landscape, Romba remains realistic about her chances of being part of history at the Games.
"The Olympics? It will be very, very hard to have a place. It's only 16 players so it's very tough to qualify," she says.
"Of course, I have more chance with Portuguese nationality because I will be the no.1. But it's still tough to make it. The thing that pushed me to change nationality is all the new opportunities, like the European Team Championships and the European Games. The Olympics is not the first goal, although I do think about it, of course."
