U.S. athletes gear up for World Outdoors with 2005 Visa Championship Series

PHILADELPHIA - The 2005 Outdoor Visa Championship Series features pressure-packed meets, opportunities for great performances, and fields full of Olympic medalists as American athletes prepare for the 2005 World Outdoor Championships.

Fans around the country will be able to watch the meets on seven national television broadcasts on NBC and ESPN. Adding to the excitement of competition, the Visa Championship Series features over $2 million in prize and athlete support dollars, including a $50,000 bonus and prize package going to the Visa Champions. Visa Champions will be the top male and female performers of the Visa Championship series.

New for the Outdoor Visa Championship Series is a special consumer promotion, the Visa Championship Series "Watch. Click. Win." Online Sweepstakes, which will enable fans to pick who they think will win the title of Visa Champion, and to be eligible for prizes.

Coast to Coast Meets

The Visa Championship Series kicks off with USA vs. The World at the Penn Relays, where an expected crowd of 50,000 fans at historic Franklin Field will have a chance to see Team USA's men's and women's 4x100m relays try to avenge their Olympic disappointments against men's gold medalist Great Britain and women's gold medalist Jamaica. In the 4x400 relays, Team USA will try to extend its global dominance.

The Visa Championship Series invitational meetings begin May 22 with the adidas Track Classic in Los Angeles. The Series continues May 30 with the Payton Jordan U.S. Open in Stanford, Calif.; and on June 4 it moves to the Nike Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore.

On June 11, the Visa Championship Series returns to the East Coast for a top-tier Invitational Track Meet, the first world-class meet to be held at the brand-new Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island, in New York City.

The final stop returns the Visa Championship Series to the track-mad Los Angeles area for the 2005 USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, held June 23-26. Nearly 1,000 of America's top athletes will compete at the Home Depot Center, vying for the right to represent Team USA at the World Outdoor Championships in Helskini, Finland, in August.

Visa Champions

The male and female athlete with the top overall performance in the 2005 Visa Championship Series will be named Visa Champion and receive a $25,000 bonus. In addition, each Visa Champion will have the opportunity to be a guest of Visa at one of several premier events: Super Bowl, NFL Pro Bowl®, DAYTONA 500®, Kentucky Derby, Tony Awards® or Pebble Beach® Weekend. Shot putter John Godina and sprinter Angela Daigle made history during the 2005 Indoor Visa Championship series as the first Visa Champions, winning their titles with world-leading performances at the USA Indoor Championships.

"The Indoor Visa Championship Series proved how exciting the Race for the Championship is for athletes, fans, and TV viewers," said USATF CEO Craig Masback. "The Race for the Championships literally came down to the last event of the meet. We look forward to more edge-of-your seat competition during the outdoor season."

The top American male finisher and top American female finisher in each event of the Visa Championship Series, including the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, will have their performances assigned a point total based on the IAAF Scoring Tables of Athletics. The athlete whose single-best performance has the highest point total at the end of the Visa Championship Series will be named the Visa Champion. Performances can come from any Visa Championship Series meet, and must be in an event contested at the 2005 IAAF World Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Although the top performance can come at any of the Visa Championship Series meets, an athlete must compete at the USA Outdoor Championships in order to be named Visa Champion. Athletes competing on the high school or college level are not eligible. Ties will be broken by determining which tied athlete had the best mark at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, based on the IAAF Scoring Tables of Athletics.

"Visa has been a proud sponsor of USA Track & Field since it began its Olympic partnership in the1980s, and through the Visa Championship Series we are committed to helping prepare America's Olympic hopefuls in their journey to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games," said Michael Lynch, senior vice president, Visa USA. "We have been thrilled by the response from the athletes and the track and field community following the inauguralindoor Visa Championship Series. John Godina, and Angela Daigle turned in memorable performances to capture the first-ever Visa Champion titles during the indoor series, and we're looking forward to adding more names to that legacy of excellence in track and field during the outdoor season."

Television success

Now in its seventh year, the Visa Championship Series - formerly the Golden Spike Tour - provides America's best athletes the opportunity to compete in the United States and earn substantial prize money in front of a nationally televised audience. Live crowds at Visa Championship Series meets typically are sold out at each venue, with TV ratings rising as much as 25 percent, year over year. USATF's seven shows on NBC in 2004 averaged a 2.5 rating. In recent years, track & field has had 40 national TV broadcasts per year.

The 2005 Visa Championship Series television series begins with live coverage of USA vs. The World at the Penn Relays, April 30 on NBC. The adidas Track Classic will be broadcast on May 22 on ESPN, with the Payton Jordan U.S. Open to air May 30 on ESPN. NBC will broadcast the Nike Prefontaine Classic on June 5 and the Invitational Track Meet at Icahn Stadium June 11. ESPN will cover the first day of the USA Outdoor Championships June 25, with ESPN2 broadcasting the meet June 26.

The Visa Championships Series and Visa Champions program are a key part of Visa's continued, overall support of USATF and its athletes through the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. The Visa Championship Series provides a showcase for past Olympic champions, and a proving ground for champions of the future.

For more information on the Visa Championship Series, visit www.usatf.org/visa. For ticket information, click on individual meet links at www.usatf.org/visa. Visa - the only credit card accepted by USA Track & Field.

2005 Outdoor Visa Championship Series TV Schedule

(Broadcasts subject to change. All times Eastern; check local listings)

Date Event Network Time

Apr. 30 USA vs. The World at Penn Relays NBC 4-6 p.m.

May 22 adidas Track Classic ESPN 4-6 p.m.

May 30 Payton Jordan U.S. Open ESPN2 10-11:30 p.m.

June 5 Nike Prefontaine Classic NBC 2-3 p.m.

June 11 Invitational Track Meet NBC 4-5:30 p.m.

June 25 USA Outdoor Championships ESPN 4-6 p.m.

June 26 USA Outdoor Championships ESPN2 5-7 p.m.

2005 Outdoor Visa Championship Series Event Schedule

Date Event Site

Apr. 30 USA vs. The World at Penn Relays Philadelphia, Pa. (Franklin Field)

May 22 adidas Track Classic Los Angeles, Calif. (Home Depot Center, Carson, Calif.)

May 30 Payton Jordan U.S. Open Stanford, Calif. (Cobb Track & Angell Field)

June 4 Nike Prefontaine Classic Eugene, Ore. (Hayward Field)

June 11 Invitational Track Meet New York City (Icahn Stadium)

June 23-26 USA Outdoor Championships Carson, Calif. (Home Depot Center)