Trump vs. Harvard: Canadian university athlete Ocean Ma caught in crossfire

Highlighted by an Ivy League title and divisional crown at the national college playdowns, Canada's Ocean Ma enjoyed a memorable first season on Harvard's squash team.

She hopes to build on that in her sophomore year, despite the uncertainty given the latest salvos between the Trump administration and the university.

"I don't want to have the college experience taken away from me," Ma said.

It has been a nervous time for Ma and the rest of the international student population at the Boston-area school.

Last Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security decided to make Harvard ineligible for international student visas.

The decision could force as many as 6,800 foreign students, over one-quarter of the school's enrolment, to transfer or leave the country. A judge later issued a temporary restraining order that put the sanction on hold, pending a lawsuit that was filed Friday in federal court.

The developments are the latest escalation in a fight stemming from the administration's assertions that Harvard failed to protect Jewish students from antisemitism.

A hearing is set for this Thursday to determine whether the temporary order should be extended, Harvard president Alan Garber said in an update letter on the school website.

Ma, 18, from Richmond, B.C., was one of five players with international hometowns on Harvard's 11-player women's squash team last season.

The men's team, which includes Vancouver's Jacob Lin, had 10 international hometowns listed on its 13-player squad. Canadian Squash Hall of Famer Mike Way serves as a team coach.

"If Trump's demands went through then [over] half the team would be gone and there would be no Harvard squash," Ma said from Dalian, China.

Over three-dozen Canadian student-athletes were