OtteyLJUBLJANA, Slovenia (AP):
JAMAICAN-BORN sprinter Merlene Ottey was granted Slovene citizenship yesterday, the president of the Slovene Athletics Association said.
"The government authorised Ottey's naturalisation under a special law which enables foreigners to become Slovene citizens if they possess outstanding skills," Roman Jakic told The Associated Press.
Jakic declined to elaborate, saying Ottey would hold a press conference in the coming days to lay out her future career plans.
A former world champion at 200 metres and the winner of nearly 30 Olympic and World Championship medals, Ottey, 41, has lived and trained in Slovenia for the past few years.
She has not said why she seeks Slovenian citizenship, but her decision could be linked to the controversy surrounding her appearance for Jamaica at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
Ottey was a last-minute appointment to the national team, displacing national champion Peta-Gaye Dowdie after the International Amateur Athletic Federation lifted her one-year ban based on a positive test for the anabolic steroid nandrolone. The federation later ruled that the Swiss lab had mishandled Ottey's sample.
Team members and the Jamaican public largely disapproved of the replacement. Ottey finished fourth over 100 metres in Sydney.
Ottey has been training for several years with Srdjan Djordjevic, Slovenia's leading athletics coach.
