The Malta Olympic Committee is still awaiting a decision on whether Ashley Callus, an Australian swimmer of Maltese origin, will be available to swim for Malta in next June’s Games for European Small Nations in Monaco.

MOC Director of Sport Pippo Psaila told The Malta Independent yesterday that the two sides were still corresponding. “He has not yet taken a final decision, but we are very hopeful that he will accept our invitation,” said Psaila.

Psaila said that Dr Michael Gialanze, the Swimming Unit’s chairman, had met his manager recently in Melbourne, on the occasion of the world championships, and they discussed the possibility of Callus’s participation at the Monaco Games.

Gialanze was told that Callus was enthusiastic about representing Malta, though he was not yet in possession of a Maltese passport.

In the past few days, Callus was taking part in meetings in Sydney and Queensland. “It is possible that he has prolonged the decision because of these meetings. These swimmers are attending one meeting after another till the end of their season. As to the Maltese passport, I do not think this is a problem with the new laws on double citizenship,” said Psaila.

The MOC Director of Sport said he believed Callus would not find it difficult to represent Malta if the Monaco Games fitted into his programme, that is, if he has no commitments over that period. “His participation will certainly raise the image of the Games. Though 28 years, I am sure he will be an overall star,” said Psaila.

Callus was onkly 21 years old when he was selected to make his debut at the age of 21 at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in the 4x100m freestyle relay. Swimming with Klim, Fydler and Ian Thorpe, the Australians were not expected to win, as the United States had never lost the event at Olympic level. But they won the gold medal.

At the 2001 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, he was again part of the 4x100m freestyle relay team which won gold ahead of the United States, and was also a finalist in the 100m freestyle. The following year, 2002 saw his finest moment as he won individual gold at the World Short Course Championships in Moscow, Russia in the 100m freestyle.

He had a bad Olympics run in Athens in 2004, when it was revealed he had contracted the Epstein_Barr virus and he took a year off to recover.

At the 2006 Commonwealth Games, Callus anchored the 4x100m freestyle relay team to silver, and also reached the final of both the 50m and 100m freestyle, although he was considerably outside his best time in both events. He took a new gold for Australia in the World Short Course Championships at 4x100 metres medley relay, in Shanghai, China, in April last year.