PALO ALTO, Calif. – Verizon Communications, the official telecommunications sponsor of USA Track & Field, has increased its investment in the sport by becoming the presenting sponsor of the NBC and ESPN telecasts of the 2003 USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, USATF announced today. The meet will be held June 19-22 on the campus of Stanford University.

“Verizon will have a major presence on-site and on television at this year’s national championships,” said USATF CEO Craig Masback. “We are very pleased that they recognize the tremendous value our national platform can provide their brand.”

Verizon’s presenting sponsorship will include an increased commercial presence on the NBC (Saturday, June 21, 4:00-6:00 PM) and ESPN (Sunday, June 22, 4:00-5:30 PM) telecasts; title sponsorship of two disciplines within the meet; increased on-track signage; in-broadcast vignettes; and logo placement on the bib of each athlete.

Verizon will also integrate a Marion Jones bobblehead give-away into their overall sponsorship program. The bobblehead will be given away at the Outdoor Championships and at retail outlets throughout the Palo Alto area.

Verizon already serves as the presenting sponsor for the USA vs. THE WORLD television broadcast at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia, and as the title sponsor of the Verizon Millrose Games in New York City.

Since becoming a USATF sponsor in 2001, Verizon has worked with USATF to develop the Verizon Youth Series (VYS), a ground-breaking program for young athletes. The VYS includes all major USATF Youth Championship events, including the Youth Athletics Championships, Junior Track & Field Championships, and other key meets. The Verizon All-America team is composed of the top eight finishers in each event at the Junior Championships, and at each VYS meet, the top boy and girl athletes are named Verizon Outstanding Athletes of the Meet.

USA Track & Field is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. With nearly 100,000 members nationwide, USATF includes 56 Associations around the country and 2,500 local clubs. USATF sanctions more than 4,000 track and field, running and race walking events each year. For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org.

A Fortune 10 company, Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 136.6 million access line equivalents and 33.3 million Verizon Wireless customers. Verizon is the third-largest long-distance carrier for U.S. consumers, with 13.2 million long-distance lines, and the company is also the largest directory publisher in the world, as measured by directory titles and circulation. With approximately $67 billion in annual revenues and 227,000 employees, Verizon's global presence extends to the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

VERIZON’S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.