SAO PAULO -- Rugby player Isadora Cerullo never lived in Brazil. Fencer Ghislain Perrier speaks very little Portuguese. Golfer Miriam Nagl played abroad most of her life.Theyll still be parading under the host nations flag at the opening ceremony of the Rio de Janeiro Games come Aug. 5.Cerullo, Perrier and Nagl are among several athletes who will be fulfilling their Olympic dream because of Brazils shortage of athletes in sports it automatically qualified for as host. Without an Olympic tradition to fall back on, the country was left to rapidly recruit an international band of athletes for events such as field hockey, golf, water polo, fencing and rugby.Their ties, in many cases, are weak. Some have lived away for most of their lives but were born in Brazil. Some were born abroad but have Brazilian parents or grandparents. Some had almost no links to the country but were hired by local federations and became naturalized.I would have very slim chances of participating in the Olympics if I hadnt made the switch to play for Brazil, said Nagl, a Brazilian-born golfer who left the country when she was 8 and had always played for Germany. When this idea came up and I realized that I had a chance to make it to Rio, I started dreaming about being at the Maracana Stadium during the opening ceremony.The 35-year-old Nagl, who plays in the Ladies European Tour and is No. 444 in the womens world rankings, said she hadnt given much thought about representing her native country until being contacted by golf officials after Rio was awarded the games.By making the switch, I gave myself a chance to be in the Olympics, but I also thought about how this could be good for Brazil, about how I could become a good ambassador and help the game develop, she said.Nagl admitted she had concerns about how she would be seen in Brazil after deciding to compete for it despite being away for so long.If there is some bad press about it, I will be fine, she said. I know my connection, and I feel its a very strong connection. I feel good about this.Brazil had only two foreign athletes in its delegation at the 2012 London Games -- American basketball player Larry Taylor and Chinese table-tennis player Gui Lin. Now about 20 international athletes will be taking advantage of the many extra spots available for the home nation in Rio.The International Olympic Committee said it is against changes of nationality motivated by money and other unethical reasons, but it allows for switches made within the rules, including when a country has changed international status, when an athlete is a citizen of more than one nation or because of a direct link to a country, such as marriage or permanent relocation. The international federations also must approve the changes in most cases.Rugby is one of the sports in which Brazil lacks tradition but will compete anyway. Hoping to put on a good show in front of the home fans, the local federation launched a worldwide campaign -- entitled Brazilian Rugby Players Wanted -- to attract athletes playing abroad.A few who responded to the campaign will be in Rio, including American-born Cerullo, who has Brazilian parents but had never visited the country until after contacting Brazilian rugby officials. Two Brazilian brothers who lived in France also made it to the team, as well a Brazilian-born athlete who lived and played in Argentina. England-born Juliano Fiori and France-born Laurent Bourda-Couhet, who has a Brazilian mother, will also play.Brazils fencing team earned eight additional spots as hosts and included three international players for the games. Among them are Ghislain Perrier, who was born in Brazil but left the country as a baby after being adopted by a French family, and Italian-born Nathalie Moellhausen, who competed for Italy at the 2012 London Games but chose to be with the hosts in Rio to fulfill the wish of her Brazilian grandmother.I dont have many connections to Brazil, admitted Perrier, who has lived and trained in France most of his life. I spent vacation in Brazil a few times, but I know only a few people there.The fencing team will also have Marta Baeza, who was born in Brazil but had been competing for Spain, and reserve team member Katherine Miller, who was born in the United States.Another foreigner, Hungarys Emese Takacs, tried to make the team but she was dropped after her citizenship was contested in court by a Brazilian athlete who had been left out of the squad. Takacs was accused of faking her marriage in Brazil to become naturalized.She had the legal documents but we always suspected it was a fraud, the Brazilian who had lost her spot, Amanda Simeao, told local media. She was married to a Brazilian but had a boyfriend in Hungary.Takacs denied wrongdoing but lost her battles in court.Another controversial case was water polo goalkeeper Slobodan Soro, a Serbian whose naturalization process was approved just before the games. He and center Josip Vrlic of Croatia were hired to play for Brazil despite not having direct connections to the country. They were among five foreign-born players picked to play for the Brazilian team by Croat coach Ratko Rudic, the gold medalist with Croatia at the London Games.The others were Spains Adria Delgado, who has a Brazilian father; Italian-born Paulo Salemi, son of a Brazilian mother; and Cuban Ives Gonzalez, who is married to a Brazilian. The team also has Brazilian-born Felipe Perrone, who used to play for the Spanish national team before joining the hosts for the Rio Games.They have been playing for Brazilian clubs for some time, this is not something that just happened, said Ricardo Cabral, who is in charge of Brazils water polo team. We created an Olympic project to help the sport develop and make Brazil more competitive. Because of the Olympics in Rio, there is more investment available and we want to take advantage of that to give the sport more visibility.---Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/tales-azzoni Discount Adidas NHL Jerseys .S. -- Nikolaj Ehlers registered a hat trick for the third straight game and Jonathan Drouin had a goal and five assists as the Halifax Mooseheads hammered the host Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 10-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Adidas NHL Jerseys Autographed .Y. -- Bills receiver Stevie Johnson has a bone to pick with the NFL schedule maker. http://www.cheapnhljerseyssigned.com/ . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season. Signed Adidas NHL Jerseys . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. Stitched Adidas NHL Jerseys . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets.Tony Pulis says foreign Premier League managers are viewed differently to him and Sean Dyche, despite similar styles. Speaking ahead of West Bromwich Albions game against Burnley, live on Monday Night Football, Pulis defended his opposite number Dyche after the Clarets boss argued some of Jurgen Klopps tactics were no different to his own, but said the Liverpool boss receives far more praise. Dyche claimed Burnley were criticised for their high-pressing style despite it being reminiscent of that employed by Klopp at Liverpool and Claudio Ranieri at Leicester, and Welshman Pulis has explained why he agrees with Dyche. Thats the way it is, they (foreign managers) come into the country, theyre sexy, theyre new, theyre bright, Pulis said, as quoted by the Birmingham Mail. Thats fine, brilliant, not a problem for me.Ill listen to them, they say Klopp trains them three times a day in pre-season, absolutely amazing. Id never have thought of that. Sean Dyche said his high-pressing style is not praised like Klopps, according to Pulis Thats what Seans on about, they do stuff that is astonishing that weve never heard of. Pulis believes that while foreign Premier League managers have enjoyed success in recent years, British coaches have not been given the same opportunities to win titles. We couldve done with someone stepping in to that top six, said Pulis. And then taking it on to win something - and that hasnt happened. Highlights of West Broms 2-1 win away at champions Leicester Im sure other people will get the chance, and when they do you hope they end up winning something.ddddddddddddWe need that, we need a British manager whos going to win things. Sky Sports Black Friday sale Upgrade to Sky Sports now and get 12 months half price! 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