Roy Jones Jr received his Russian passport on Tuesday in Moscow. Photograph: Maxim Shipenkov/EPA
Roy Jones Jr officially becomes Russian citizen
From “The Guardian”
by Bryan Armen Graham
It’s official: Roy Jones Jr is a Russian citizen.
The four-division champion widely regarded as one of the finest prizefighters of his generation was presented his Russian passport in a ceremony on Tuesday at the Federal Migration Service’s offices in Moscow.
“I am Russian,” Jones, 46, said in Russian.
Vladimir Putin had signed a decree to grant citizenship to Jones in September after the boxer announced his intent to apply during an August meeting with the Russian president in Crimea, the territory annexed by Russia last year. Putin granted the request on the grounds that Jones “intends to spend a significant part of his life working in Russia” according to the Kremlin’s official website.
Jones (62-8, 45 KOs), who also works as a boxing analyst for HBO, pulled out of a scheduled fight against Tony Moran in Liverpool last month without explanation. He’s repeatedly expressed interest in making one last run at a world championship at cruiserweight.
Full story here: http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/oct/27/roy-jones-jr-officially-becomes-russian-citizen-with-moscow-passport-ceremony
