Former Y. basketball star is deputy ambassador
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Kresimir Cosic, a BYU basketball star for four years and a former member of the Yugoslavian Olympic basketball team, has been named deputy ambassador to the United States for the newly independent nation of Croatia.
In a recent Deseret News article, Cosic said he was sent to Washington by the president of Croatia, which was created from the former Yugoslavia, because he is familiar with America.Cosic, a member of the Church, was introduced to America while playing basketball at BYU from 1969 to 1973 as a stand-out center. He was also in touch with America through his involvement in international basketball. He coached the Yugoslavian national team between the 1984 and 1988 Olympics, after previously playing on the team.
As deputy ambassador, Cosic's job will be to work closely with the Croatian ambassador to develop relationships with America to help his country grow economically and become more secure from the wars ravaging the former Yugoslavia.
Even before being named deputy ambasssador, Cosic had come to the United States and persuaded the United States to send a diplomatic representative to Croatia.
In the Deseret News article, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a friend of Cosic's, said: "He's a national hero over there, and one of the few people who is trusted by all the various factions and knows all the officials."
Sen. Hatch said Cosic could have made millions playing in the NBA, but chose to go home and play on the national team and later become its coach.
