|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
Straw poll British official OKs Tyson to fight in Scotland
Posted: Thursday May 18, 2000 11:54 AM
LONDON (AP) -- The British government on Thursday said it would allow Mike Tyson into the country to fight Lou Savarese in Glasgow, Scotland, next month. Despite strong opposition from lawmakers and a newspaper poll that indicated that two-thirds of Scots don't want Tyson let in, Home Secretary Jack Straw, whose department covers law and order, allowed the convicted rapist to return to Britain for the June 24 fight. "I am fully aware of the strong opinions which have been expressed on Mr. Tyson's application, especially in Scotland, as I was when this matter last came before me in January," Straw said. "It is however my responsibility to make decisions of this kind as fairly and impartially as I can and that is what I have sought to do." Tyson, who served three years for a rape conviction, was cleared by Straw to enter the country in January despite a law that bars entry to anyone who has served a jail sentence of a year or more. Tyson knocked out Julius Francis in Manchester, England. The Home Secretary agreed to bend the rules at the time, citing exceptional circumstances and said the cancellation would have cost small businesses millions. But he also said that the visa might be a one-time occurrence. Two rival sites in Glasgow, Scotland, are believed to be competing to land June's bout: Scotland's 52,000 capacity national soccer stadium, Hampden Park, and Celtic's 60,000 Parkhead stadium. Women's groups are lining up against Tyson as they did in January. In a poll of 1,000 Scots, conducted by the tabloid Daily Record, 62.3 percent wanted Tyson kept out of the country. That compared with 21.1 percent saying he should be allowed in while 16.6 weren't sure. Despite the protests from women's group, Tyson was received enthusiastically in January when he was treated like a rock star and mobbed everywhere he went while training in London and Manchester.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
