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PRESS ROOM Press Release/ Announcements About Sports Media Challenge Contact Information: Kathleen Hessert, CSP President E-mail: khessert@preptowin.com Tel: 704.365.5027 MAILING ADDRESS: Sports Media Challenge 2700 Coltsgate Road Suite 203 Charlotte, NC 28211

Press Release Jan 23, 2001 Kathleen Hessert says Ray Lewis needs to go for "quick bleed" at Super Bowl media day. As attention is turning to Tampa Bay and the media gears up for a blitz on the players, the spotlight is focused on one athlete in particular and the sins of his past. Kathleen Hessert was asked by the New Jersey Star-Ledger what steps Baltimore Ravens’ star Ray Lewis must take to effectively deal with reporters’ relentless quest to get the story on the first super bowl player ever to be accused of murder. Her number one recommendation: go for the quick bleed not the slow hemorrhage. Be proactive not reactive. “He absolutely has to stay calm under all circumstances,” says Kathleen. “I hope he has mastered some form of bio feedback to deal with the stress because he’s going to be under a tremendous amount of stress. The worst thing he can do is blow up and get angry. He’d lose all control about what was written about him, and he’s lose all credibility.” In order to avoid such a scenario, Kathleen said she advises clients to approach interviews the same way they approach games: stay absolutely focused, don’t get down because things aren’t going your way, if you get knocked down, just like on the playing field, start fresh and refocus with each new question until the interview is over. The second worse thing he could do is not talk at all. “If he stonewalls he’s going to look insensitive to the issue,” Kathleen said. “If he doesn’t respond, he’s letting everyone else create an image of him, and it’s an image created without his input. “He has a tremendous opportunity to influence what people think about him right now. But in order to first influence the public, he has to influence the media and what is said about him.” Go here for more information about Image and Ray Lewis CONTACT: Sports Media Challenge | Rocky Welsing, Director of Sales and Marketing, 704/365-5027, rwelsing@preptowin.com | http://www.sportsmediachallenge.com