Boulder, CO (Wednesday, January 21, 2004) - Former World Cup moguls champion Jeremy Bloom (Loveland, CO) announced Monday he planned to accept ski endorsements and try to continue playing football for the University of Colorado.

In a press conference on campus after returning from Lake Placid, N.Y., where he competed over the weekend at a World Cup moguls contest as part of the Nature Valley Freestyle Cup, Bloom said he would have his agent begin accepting endorsements Tuesday.

He has given up lucrative ski endorsement money for two years, playing for CU as a wide receiver while also returning punts and kickoffs. Bloom was a member of the freshman All-America Team in 2002, as selected by the Football Writers Association of America. He has challenged the NCAA in court but lost in a bid to overturn the NCAA ruling banning endorsement money, even if it's in a totally different sport.

"The unfortunate side of this," Bloom said, "is that the NCAA possesses the power to kick me off the football field and take my scholarship away, even though their own rule book states that an amateur student-athlete can simultaneously be a professional in another sport."

"The U.S. Ski Team will continue to support Jeremy as it has the past two seasons," said U.S. Ski Team Vice President of Athletics Alan Ashley. "Jeremy is an extraordinary athlete who has a great opportunity as an Olympic athlete."

Bloom, 21, a 2002 Olympian and the '02 World Cup moguls champion, stands fourth in the moguls points after five World Cup events this season. He missed preseason training and began skiing after CU completed its football season.

He said he's dreamed of winning an Olympic gold medal since he was nine but NCAA restrictions bar him from raising the funds to support that dream while he doubles as a college football player. Thus, he said, he has decided to accept "ski-related endorsements" but also continue his education at CU, returning for his third year of football eligibility.

He delayed entering college so he could pursue his Olympic dream with the 2002 season. CU Coach Gary Barnett gave him his blessing and has expressed continued support for Bloom's aspirations.

"My desire to play college football is equal strong as is my desire to win an Olympic gold medal," Bloom said. "I hope that the NCAA will finally realize that my desire to win in skiing is not criminal and that my pursuit for a gold medal doesn't warrant expulsion."