Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree of May 28 granting Russian citizenship to American athlete Jeffrey Monson. The athlete himself considers himself a Russian since 2015.
In 2014, Monson stated that he had applied for Russian citizenship. In late 2015, the fighter claimed that he had already received a Russian passport. However, the Kremlin asked not to put the horse before the cart.
"First of all, I want to note one thing - he will have to take the oath. Then, it will be considered that he has received citizenship," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
The athlete has several tattoos with symbols of Russia on his body. Among them, there are words "freedom" and "solidarity", the sickle and hammer imprint on the left shin, a red and black star on the chest, as well as an image of "Motherland" monument on the left leg. It was said that the athlete was going to join the Communist Party.
Reportedly, Monson dreams of organizing a bear farm in Siberia. He also wants to train young Russian athletes.
Jeffrey William Monson was born and raised in Minnesota, USA. Performing in mixed martial arts, Monson, nicknamed The Snowman, has had 85 fights and won 60 of them. He is also the world champion in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.