PRESS RELEASE
Release date February 6, 2004
Additional information available from Harvey Abrams.
tel: (814) 237-8331
fax: (814) 237-8332
email:

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ROCKY was listed on ebay this past week and someone placed a $3 million bid -- the opening amount. But four hours after the invoice was sent to the buyer IISOH President Harvey Abrams learned that the bid was a fraud.

The person who responded to the invoice claimed to be a college student and stated that he never placed the bid. His entire email message reads:

I don't think i know whats going on here i got home from school today and now i iwe 3million dollers and people are emailing me all these questions. i never bid on this. sorr about the inconvienece. but i'm just a college student. i don't have that money nor would i ever consider bidding on this.

Thank You

M------ W---

Abrams tried to contact ebay but the online auctioneer is nearly impossible to communicate with in spite of their help pages. Abrams account with ebay shows that he owes over $45,000 in fees that would become due at the end of the month. In the meantime The IISOH has tried to alert the media to the fraud and has re-listed ROCKY on ebay for the same $3 million opening bid.

The new link at ebay with the re-listed auction is....
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2888368461

The auction attracted worldwide attention after the Associated Press picked up the story and placed it on their wire. Newspapers, radio stations, television stations and web sites worldwide carried the story of the auction. Over 16,000 views were made to the web page with the ROCKY listing. Unfortunately for the IISOH -- the only bid made was a fraud.

How it was done is not known, but the IISOH will be filing a complaint with the FBI and ebay with a request for an investigation.

The biggest fear that Abrams has expressed is negative feedback to the incident which could hurt the group's quest for support. "The only thing we can do is file a complaint and re-list the statue" he said. "It is certainly a disappointment, but all we can do is move on and find a buyer or donor."

----------------- end press release

For more information you may contact:

Harvey Abrams, President
International Institute for Sport and Olympic History
PO Box 175
State College, PA 16804
tel: (814) 237-8331
fax: (814) 237-8332
email:

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This page was created midnight, February 5, 2004.

Contact:
International Institute for Sport and Olympic History (IISOH)
PO Box 175
State College, PA, USA 16804

Mr. Harvey Abrams, President
Mr. Bruce Lorich, Treasurer

Phone...(814) 237-8331 - leave a message....
Fax...(814) 237-8332
email...