The speed, strength, excitement and fun of indoor track & field return to the airwaves in 2005 with USA Track & Field's Indoor Visa Championship Series.

With the series beginning and concluding in tradition-rich Boston, fans around the country will be able to watch the meets on four national television broadcasts on NBC and ESPN. Adding to the excitement of competition, the Visa Championship Series features over $1 million in prize and athlete support dollars, including a $50,000 jackpot and prize package going to the Visa Champions. Visa Champions will be the top male and female performers of the Visa Championship series.

The Visa Championship Series, announced Monday by USA Track & Field, begins January 29 with the Reebok Boston Indoor Games at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston. It continues February 4 at the most historic invitational meet in indoor track and field, the Millrose Games at New York's Madison Square Garden. On February 11 it moves to the Powered by Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

The final stop returns the Visa Championship Series to Boston's Reggie Lewis Center for the 2005 USA Indoor Track & Field Championships, held February 25-27. More than 500 of America's top athletes will compete in Boston.

On March 5-6, America's finest male multi-event athletes will contest the heptathlon and women the pentathlon at the USA Indoor Combined Events Championships. The meet will be held for the fourth consecutive year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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 be awarded an invitation of their choice to a premiere Visa-sponsored event, including the Super Bowl, NFL Pro Bowl, Daytona 500, Kentucky Derby, Tony Awards or Pebble Beach weekend.

"This year's Indoor Visa Championship Series takes our signature series of domestic meets to another level," said USATF CEO Craig Masback. "Athletes now have the motivation of not only prize money at each meet, but they are also fighting for bonus money and the title of Visa Champion. Thanks to this program, the track meets in the Visa Championship Series and their broadcasts have even more at stake."

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 have averaged more than 10,000 fans, with TV ratings rising as much as 25 percent in any given year for individual broadcasts.

USATF's seven shows on NBC in 2004 averaged a 2.5 rating, which exceeds the NBA's regular-season average. Track & field has upwards of 40 national TV broadcasts in any given year, and average Nielsen ratings for track broadcasts compare favorably with nearly every sports property. In addition to securing national TV coverage of the Visa Championship Series, USA Track & Field has worked with ESPN and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to bring same-day, prime-time coverage of international Golden League meets to ESPN throughout the summer season.

The 2005 Visa Championship Series television series begins with live coverage of the Reebok Boston Indoor Games on January 30 on ESPN. The Millrose Games will be broadcast February 5 on NBC, with the Powered by Tyson Invitational scheduled to air on February 12 on ESPN2 and the USA Indoor Championship, also on ESPN, on February 27.

2005 Indoor Visa Championship Series TV Schedule

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

Jan. 30 Reebok Boston Indoor Games ESPN 5-6:30 p.m.

Feb. 5 Millrose Games NBC 2-3:30 p.m.

Feb. 12 Powered by Tyson Invitational ESPN2 9-10:30 p.m.

Feb. 27 USA Indoor Championships ESPN 3-5 p.m.

2005 Indoor Visa Championship Series Event Schedule

Jan. 29 Reebok Boston Indoor Games Boston (Reggie Lewis Center)

Feb. 4 Millrose Games New York (Madison Square Garden)

Feb. 11 Powered by Tyson Invitational Fayetteville, Ark. (Tyson Indoor Track Center)

Feb. 25-27 USA Indoor Championships Boston (Reggie Lewis Center)

March 5-6 USA Ind. Combined Events Chapel Hill, N.C. (Eddie Smith Fieldhouse)