(Courtesy BW SportsWire -- 800-221-2462) 

#Reigning World Champion Michelle Kwan Joins Other Olympic And 
World Champions At '98 Goodwill Games Figure Skating Competition#
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NEW YORK--(BW SportsWire)--May 13, 1988--

MCI Joins Goodwill Games As Presenting Sponsor
 
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum will be the coolest place this
summer when Olympic and world champions from around the world hit the
ice for five electrifying days of world-class figure skating during
the Goodwill Games competition taking place July 29-August 2.

Headlining the array of talent is 1998 World Champion and Olympic
Silver Medalist Michelle Kwan, who will be joined by other
international skating sensations, including: 1998 Olympic Pairs
Champions Artur Dmitriev/Oksana Kazakova (Russia); 1998 World Silver
Medalist, 1996 World Champion and Five-Time U.S. Champion Todd
Eldredge (USA); 1998 World Champion Alexei Yagudin (Russia); 1998
World Pairs Champions Elena Berezhnaya/Anton Sikharulidze (Russia);
and 1998 World Silver Medalist Irina Slutskaya (Russia).  The
Goodwill Games figure skating competition is presented by MCI.

"I skated in the '94 Games in St. Petersburg, and I look forward
to this summer's competition in the U.S.," said Kwan at a Goodwill
Games press conference in Manhattan.  "I know it's going to be a
great competition."

The field of competitors--chosen from the U.S., Russia and other
countries--will represent the best Olympic-eligible figure skaters in
the world.  The U.S. and Russia are expected to each provide three
men and three women in the singles competition, two pairs and two ice
dance entries.  The rest of the line up--an additional three men and
women in the singles competition, two pairs and two ice dance
entries--will be chosen from a pool of top international talent from
other countries around the world, bringing the total number of
skaters competing to 42.  (The complete list of athletes confirmed as
of May 13 for the figure skating competition accompanies this
release).

The competition will consist of four events--mens, ladies, pairs
and ice dance--taking place over a four-day period.  An exhibition
will take place on the fifth and final day.  The following is the
complete schedule:
 
   Wednesday, July 29       Thursday, July 30      Friday, July 31
    7:30-10:00 p.m.          8:00-10:00 p.m.        8:00-10:30 p.m.
   Ice Dance (comp.)        Ice Dance (orig.)           Finals
     Pairs (short)           Ladies (short)          Pairs (free)
     Men's (short)                                   Men's (free)

             Saturday, August 1        Sunday, August 2
               8:00-10:30 p.m.          2:00-4:00 p.m.
                  Finals                  Exhibition
             Ice Dance (free)
               Ladies (free)

The Goodwill Games are offering skaters a prize purse worth over
$800,000.  The prize money structure for the ladies and men's singles
competition is as follows: 1st place - $75,000; 2nd place - $50,000;
3rd place - $30,000; 4th place - $20,000; and 5th - 9th place -
$10,000.  Prize money for pairs and dance teams is the same as above
except money is awarded to six pairs and five dance teams.

The presenting sponsor for figure skating, MCI, was also
announced during the press event.  Goodwill Games President Mike
Plant said that relationships with sponsors like MCI are key to
delivering world-class athletes to the Goodwill Games competition
menu.

"MCI has not only brought its industry-leading technology to the
Goodwill Games environment, but is also contributing toward the
delivery of the highest level of competition for spectators and
viewers to see," Plant said.  "This relationship is a cornerstone of
our overall corporate support program for the Goodwill Games.  We're
pleased to have this world-class company as a partner."

"MCI has embraced the spirit of competition since its inception
as a corporation, when it helped to break open the long distance
telephone market," said Nick Ridolfi, MCI's executive director of
global accounts in the Northeast.  "By partnering with the Goodwill
Games, we are delighted to be the presenting sponsor of a figure
skating competition that unites the world's best competitors."

MCI, headquartered in Washington D.C., is a leading provider of
local-to-global communication services to business, government and
residential users.  The company's fast-growing portfolio of advanced
data, Internet and IT services now accounts for nearly a quarter of
MCI's $20 billion in annual revenue.  MCI operates one of the world's
largest and most advanced digital networks, connecting local markets
in the U.S. to hundreds of locations worldwide.  MCI has agreed to
merge with WorldCom, one of the world's fastest-growing
communications companies.  The merger, which is expected to be
completed in mid-1998, will create MCI WorldCom, a company uniquely
positioned in the U.S. local and long distance markets, as well as
the global data and Internet markets.

The 1998 Goodwill Games are scheduled July 19 - August 2 in
Manhattan, Nassau County and Staten Island.  The Games will feature
1,500 international athletes competing in 15 sports for a prize purse
of $5 million in world record/performance incentives, the
largest prize purse in multi-sport history.

More than 600,000 tickets are available for sale to the 15 sports
of the 1998 Goodwill Games.  Tickets, which range in price from $10
to $60, are available through Ticketmaster(R), the Nassau Veterans
Memorial Coliseum box office and the Madison Square Garden box
office.

All tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster outlets, phone
service or website (www.ticketmaster.com).  Phone numbers for
Ticketmaster are 212/307-7171, 201/507-8900, 914/454-3388 and
516/888-9000.  All tickets purchased through Ticketmaster are subject
to a Ticketmaster service charge.  Tickets for events held at Nassau
Coliseum or Madison Square Garden are subject to a facility fee.

TBS Superstation, the Games' host network, will televise 45 hours
of prime-time coverage of the 1998 Goodwill Games.  CBS will televise
10 hours of weekend, afternoon coverage.  In addition to appearing on
TBS and CBS, boxing will be televised on HBO as part of the Boxing
After Dark series.  The 1998 Games mark the first time a sporting
event has appeared on all three levels of television distribution.
Turner Sports is the host broadcaster and is coordinating all aspects
of the production.  Internationally, the syndication rights are being
sold by Warner Bros. International Television Distribution.

For more information on the Goodwill Games and their programs,
visit the Games' website at www.goodwillgames98.com.

1998 Goodwill Games Figure Skating Athlete List
- As of May 13, 1998 -
Additional athletes to be named later

-- Men's Singles --

Todd Eldredge, USA - 1998 World Silver Medalist,
1996 World Champion, and Five-Time U.S. Champion

Michael Weiss, USA - Two-time U.S. Silver Medalist and
6th place, 1998 World Championships

Tim Goebel, USA - 1998 I.S.U. Junior Series Champion

Alexei Yagudin, Russia - 1998 World Champion

Evgeni Pluschenko, Russia - 1998 World Bronze Medalist

Alexei Urmanov, Russia - 1994 Goodwill Games Champion and
1994 Olympic Champion

Steven Cousins, Great Britian - 7th place, 1998 World Championships

-- Ladies' Singles --

Michelle Kwan, USA - Two-time World Champion ('98, '96)
and 1998 Olympic Silver Medalist

Nicole Bobek, USA - 1998 and 1997 U.S. Bronze Medalist and
1995 World Bronze Medalist

Angela Nikodina, USA - 5th place, 1998 U.S. Nationals

Irina Slutskaya, Russia - 1998 World Silver Medalist

Maria Butyrskaya, Russia - 1998 World Bronze Medalist

Elena Sokolova, Russia - 8th place, 1998 World Championships

Laetitia Hubert, France - 4th place, 1998 World Championships

Tanja Szewczenko, Germany - 2nd place, 1998 Champions Series Final
and 1998 European Bronze Medalist

Anna Rechino, Poland - 5th place, 1998 World Championships

-- Pairs --

Oksana Kazakova/Artur Dmitriev, Russia - 1998 Olympic Champions

Elena Berezhnaya/Anton Sikharulidze, Russia - 1998 World
Champions and Olympic Silver Medalists

Kristy Sargeant/Kris Wirtz, Canada - 7th place, 1998
World Championships

Sarah Abitbol/Stephane Bernadis, France - 8th place, 1998
World Championships

Peggy Schwarz/Mirko Muller, Germany - 1998 World Bronze Medalists

-- Dance --

Anjelika Krylova/Oleg Ovsiannikov, Russia - 1998 World Champions

Irina Lobacheva/Ilia Averbukh, Russia - 4th place, 1998 World Championships

CONTACTS: Goodwill Games, Atlanta
          Michael Lewellen, 404/827-4786
          or
          Goodwill Games, New York
          Richard Finn, 212/484-7647
          or
          U.S. Figure Skating
          Heather Linhart, 719/635-5200
          or
          MCI
          Jill Hudes, 212/519-4279