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Northern Arizona University runner Luis Grijalva qualified for the Tokyo Olympics for his home country of Guatemala at a track race last month.

But since then, whether he would actually make the trip was up in the air. That’s because the 22-year-old is a recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, which makes traveling abroad difficult.

“All my life all I have know(n) is the United States. Even though my roots started in Guatemala in some ways I feel as American as anybody else who was born here. DACA takes away my freedom of ever leaving the country and be able to come back in,” Grijalva wrote in an Instagram post this week. 

He wrote it would be an “honor and a privilege to represent my home country” of Guatemala “but also be able to be a voice and represent over 600,000 Dreamers like me.”

Grijalva’s personal best of 13 minutes and 13.14 seconds in the 5,000-meter race at the NCAA championships broke records but also launched a sprint through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency to try to get him expedited permission to leave the country and be able to return.

It was unclear whether he’d make it to Tokyo. With help from an attorney, members of Congress and immigration officials, he got the go-ahead Monday, just in time to get to Japan for the preliminary race on August 3.

DACA was started by the Obama administration in 2012 to prevent some undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as young kids — like Grijalva, who came with his family from Guatemala when he was 1 — from deportation.

DACA recipients generally are not allowed to come back into the U.S. if they leave, since they don’t have legal status. There’s an exception, though: They can apply for what’s known as advance parole, which lets them leave the country for education, work or humanitarian efforts.

That application process usually takes a few months, but Grijalva had just weeks from making the Guatemalan Olympic team to needing to arrive in Tokyo.

Grijalva and his lawyer in early July asked the immigration office for permission to compete in the Olympics. The process was moving slowly, said California-based immigration attorney Jessica Smith Bobadilla, so the pair decided to go in person to the Phoenix office Monday.

Grijalva posted on Instagram that the trip to the office in Phoenix was “one last effort.” 

Smith Bobadilla said she remained confident throughout the process, despite its challenges, because she felt Grijalva had a “very deserving case.” She said she was in touch with the offices of U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly and Rep. Tom O’Halleran, D-Ariz. to help support the effort.

“There were still a lot of delays and a lot of uncertainty, but that’s not uncommon dealing with the immigration system … I feel that he felt honestly very supported and cheered on by some of the people at USCIS who we had contact with.”

Grijalva posted on his Instagram Monday with what appears to be immigration paperwork in hand: “It’s official I’m going to Tokyo.”  

His airplane leaves Friday.

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Standout runner at NAU

Grijalva was a star runner on NAU’s cross country and track teams. He helped the cross country team win national championships in 2017, 2018 and 2020. 

His second-place finish in the 5,000 meters at the NCAA outdoor championships in June was the third-fastest time in NCAA outdoor history, said NAU assistant distance cross country and track coach Jarred Cornfield. He also broke NAU and Big Sky Conference records. 

“He was absolutely a huge, huge standout in our program and with what he’s done, which was no easy task with some of the runners who came before him,” Cornfield said. 

“It couldn’t happen to a better person.”

Grijalva is “one of a kind” and exactly what coaches want their team’s attitude to be, Cornfield said. He’s humble, he loves his teammates, he works hard and he doesn’t make excuses. 

“He’s the best. He’s a very humble person who really cares about the team and really cares about growth,” he said. “Anybody that he comes in contact with feels such authentic joy from Luis.” 

Cornfield said Grijalva in June finished his time running at NAU, although his college coaches will continue to work with him. Cornfield said Grijalva has one more course to take this fall and then will graduate. 

Grijalva recently became a professional runner, signing a contract with shoe company Hoka One One.

“It’s a life-changing contract, and he’s really earned that,” Cornfield said. 

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DACA recipients ‘deserve…to pursue their dreams’

The typical 90- to 120-day bureaucratic process to receive advance parole had to happen in just a few weeks. Kelly and O’Halleran learned of Grijalva’s situation and had caseworkers advocate with immigration authorities to expedite his case and approve his travel abroad.

“Luis Grijalva earned his spot at the Olympics but his DACA status almost prevented him from getting to compete,” Kelly wrote on Twitter. “I’m proud of the work our team did to help expedite the review of his case and excited to watch this @NAU student at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.”

O’Halleran’s office said in a statement that staff worked “around the clock” to support Grijalva’s case and work with USCIS.

“Young DREAMers are our neighbors, students, doctors, and teachers, and they deserve stability and access to the tools needed to pursue their dreams,” the Democratic congressman said in a statement.

Smith Bobadilla, Grijalva’s lawyer, said his challenge is an example of tough situations undocumented students can find themselves in. She wants to see Congress address the issue so Grijalva and others have a path to citizenship. 

“We don’t always have 90-day windows for opportunities in our lives,” she said. “Here we are almost 10 years later (of DACA), and I’m hoping we don’t see more of these situations where people almost miss out on a dream or a lifetime opportunity.” 

Reach the reporter at [email protected] or at 602-444-4282. Follow her on Twitter @alisteinbach.

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