[1] Marek was a rising star for Czechoslovakia after World War II, playing for his local team as well as HC Sparta Praha.

During the tournament Marek had befriended two American players, Buzz Johnson and his brother Milt, and had told them that he didn't want to return home because he was not a member of the Communist Party and feared what would happen to him in the future.

The brothers, who both attended the University of North Dakota agreed to help him apply for a student visa with their alma mater so he could defect to the United States.

There was one problem, however; because the immigrant quota from Czechoslovakia had already been reached and surpassed, Marek did not automatically qualify for resident status in the US.

Despite this recommendation, the US Senate passed bill S. 178 on May 28, 1951, to grant permanent resident status to Marek upon receipt of a head tax and visa fee.