from Rick Westhead of the Toronto Star,

It’s just not the nation you’d expect for a lanky forward who first drew the attention of NHL scouts on rinks in southern Ontario’s Mennonite country.

Radunske, a blond 29-year-old, has become the first professional athlete without Korean lineage to become a citizen of South Korea.

The country of 50 million will be host of the Winter Olympics in 2018 and while it boasts homegrown stars in sports such as baseball and tennis, it’s hardly known as a hockey powerhouse.

Radunske’s newly awarded citizenship is rare in a country that’s historically wary of outsiders and reflects the importance South Korea has placed on achieving a respectable performance in arguably the Winter Games’ most popular sport.

continued and watch a feature on Radunske below...