On December 31, Belbin was sworn in as a U.S. citizen, making her eligible to compete for the United States in February at the Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy.

On December 30, President Bush signed a bill containing a provision regarding citizenship for aliens of extraordinary ability, which pertained to Belbin. In 2002, Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) changed the rules to allow individuals in her situation to apply for their green card and visa at the same time, rather than waiting the usual 18-24 months. 

“I feel like actually it might be a blessing in disguise that we didn’t know that we would be able to compete for a spot on the team until Saturday,” Belbin said during a teleconference last week. “A lot of people put pressure on themselves a year or two years leading up to the Olympic Games. By the time the Olympic season starts, they are already overwhelmed by the pressures that they have created for themselves,” she added. “Ben and I, we have always taken each event for what it is, step by step, doing our best, and I think that we will remain in that same mindset leading up to the Olympic Games.” 

Belbin made it clear that her emotions got the best of her the day she was naturalized. “It was completely overwhelming and even when I was in the interview and exam process, I was more nervous than I have been at any competition.”

With everything finally falling into place, Belbin and Agosto can now focus solely on their skating. “This citizenship thing has been hanging over our heads like a dark cloud for so many years,” Belbin said. “We feel like we have a lot more to offer, not only with our skating, but with our personalities.”

They are happy with the amount of media attention that their situation has helped bring to U.S. ice dancing over the past couple of years. “A lot of people really don’t know figure skating, except for what they see every four years at the Olympics,” said Belbin. “This has given us the opportunity to reach a broader audience, and hopefully shine a light on American ice dancing to those who didn’t even realize there was anything going on.”

Belbin also laughs at the irony in the situation. “It’s kind of funny that in the end, the teams we may have inspired to start dancing are going to be nipping at our heels in a few years.” 

The duo is hoping to secure their spot on the 2006 U.S Olympic Team this week at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in St. Louis. They will take on the rest of the nation’s top ice dancers who are also vying for spots on the Olympic Team.

While the two are confident in their chances of making the team, they know that there is always room for improvement. “We have never considered ourselves on top of our game. Despite the success we have had during the past few years, Ben and I still feel like we have so far to go and so much more improving to do with ourselves and our skating,” Belbin said. “We don’t feel like we’ve maxed out our potential quite yet. We’ve never reached perfection in our skating, and I don’t know if we ever will.”

The two may not believe that they are on top of their game yet, but they do have plenty of experience skating together. Both agree that their connection was instant the day they met. “We came together to have a tryout one Sunday in the spring of 1998, and it was magic pretty much right away,” Belbin remarked. “We certainly had chemistry both in our skating and in our personalities. We came together after that and I have never regretted the decision since.”

As if the emotional roller coaster brought on by their citizenship struggle didn’t put enough added stress on the two this season, Tanith also had to deal with the death of her grandfather just a few days after Christmas. “It’s kind of funny how the world works,” Belbin said. “Sometimes the greatest moments of your life happen to coincide with some of the worst moments in your life. I’ve never experienced so many emotions at once. It’s certainly been a test to get through these past few weeks and be able to focus on our skating the same as we always have.”

Only time will tell the fate of this dynamic duo, but regardless of what happens the rest of the season Belbin says that she knows one thing for sure, “I know that my grandpa would be very proud of me now.”