Marion Jones asks for sentence to be commuted

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Disgraced Olympic track star Marion Jones has asked President Bush to commute her six-month prison sentence for lying to federal agents about her use of performance-enhancing drugs and a check-fraud scam.

The Justice Department confirmed Monday that Jones is among hundreds of convicted felons who have applied for presidential pardons or sentence commutations, but would provide no further details.

A pardon removes a conviction from someone's record, while a commutation only reduces or eliminates the person's sentence.

Such applications are reviewed by the Justice Department, which makes a recommendation to the president.

It is unclear when Jones, who won three gold and two bronze medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, made the request. She entered prison March 7 in Fort Worth, Texas.

After frequently denying that she ever used performance-enhancing drugs, Jones admitted last October she had lied to federal investigators in November 2003.

Jones also admitted lying about her knowledge of the involvement of Tim Montgomery, the father of her older son and a former 100-meter world-record holder, in a scheme to cash millions of dollars worth of stolen or forged checks.

Jones was sentenced in January to six months in prison and 400 hours of community service in each of the two years following her release.

She was sentenced to six months on the steroids case and two months on the check-fraud case, but was permitted to serve those sentences concurrently.

The judge in Jones' case said the check-fraud scheme was a major crime, and the wide use of steroids "affects the integrity of athletic competition."

Bush gave U.S. Olympians a rousing White House send-off to next month's games in Beijing, urging them Monday to "compete swifter, higher and stronger" but also be mindful they will be "ambassadors of liberty" to the people of China and elsewhere.

Bush is attending the opening ceremonies and the first few days of the August 8-24 games.

Standing in the Rose Garden with about two dozen athletes who will compete in the Beijing Olympics and the corresponding Paralympics there in September, Bush said he is "fired up" to watch some of the competition.

"I can't wait to salute our athletes, and I can't wait to share in the joy of your triumphs," he said.

Human rights groups had urged Bush to boycott the opening ceremonies to oppose China's crackdown on protesters in Tibet. The Bush administration argues that the Olympics are a sporting event not to be politicized, and that the president will raise human and religious rights with Chinese officials in the appropriate context.

But while talking to the athletes about their responsibilities in Beijing, Bush had a subtle message for China itself.

"You will convey our nation's most cherished values," the president said. "As ambassadors of liberty, you will represent America's love for freedom and our regard for human rights and human dignity ... to other athletes and to the people of China."

Bush beamed with pride at Team USA.

"We send you off with congratulations on the success you have already achieved, and on the accomplishments we know will be yours in Beijing," he said. "We're looking forward to rooting for you in Beijing."

The president and his wife, Laura, also were holding a White House dinner in the evening to honor current and previous U.S. Olympians.

Among those attending alongside officials from the Bush administration and the U.S. Olympic Committee were athletes such as track and field gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee and gymnastics gold medalist Shannon Miller.

The menu was not a low-cal affair, with pea soup with duck pastrami, cheese puffs, crispy black sea bass, butter beans, salad and a dessert called the "Olympic Torch," a dark chocolate tart with raspberries and a blown-sugar Olympic flame.

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