Posted: May 4, 2005

Athletics: Kirkland, Smoots lead Race for the Championship

INDIANAPOLIS - Hurdler Anjanette Kirkland and sprinter Jason Smoots are the leaders in the Race for the Championship after the first stop of the 2005 Outdoor Visa Championship Series, USA vs. the World at Penn Relays. The Visa Championship Series moves to the adidas Track Classic on May 22 in Carson, California.

At Penn, Kirkland's win in the women's 100m hurdles in 12.95 seconds was the top performance of the meet, good for 1,159 points using IAAF scoring tables. Smoots' time of 10.16 seconds in the men's 100 meters garnered 1,157 points.

During USA Track & Field's 2005 Outdoor Visa Championship Series, American athletes will compete not only for more than $1 million in prize and athlete support money, they will also be racing toward their share of a combined $100,000 jackpot and other prizes for the Visa Championship.

The male and female athlete with the top overall performances in the 2005 Visa Championship Series will be named Visa Champion and receive a $25,000 bonus to assist them on their journey to achieve their athletic goals. In addition, each Visa Champion will be awarded an invitation to their choice of a premiere Visa-sponsored event.

Crowning the Visa Champion

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.

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. In addition, athlete performances in the first four meets of the Visa Championship Series must come in events that also are contested at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, or other events that qualify athletes to compete at the Championships, in order to be eligible for Visa Champions point totals and rankings.

Ties will be broken by determining which tied athlete had the best mark at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

Fans can win, too!

Fans can be part of the Race for the Championship, and be eligible to win prizes, by logging onto www.usatf.org/win to pick who they think will win the titles of male and female Visa Champions. For more information on the Visa Championship Series "Watch. Click. Win" Online Sweepstakes, visit http://www.usatf.org/win

For more information on the 2005 Visa Championship Series, visit www.usatf.org