THE COURSE GUARANTEES TO GREET CONTESTANTS HEAD ON WHEN THEY FACE THE BUZZ SAW, WORLD FAMOUS BIG BALLS AND THE SNOW FALL, ON THIS WEEK'S EPISODE OF WINTER "WIPEOUT" ON ABC

"Wipeout -- Winter Wipeout: Shoulda SAW That Coming" - Host John Henson says "Winter Wipeout� the temperature and our contestants are DROPPING!" Twenty four competitors all have one goal in common�to be the last player standing at the end of the Winter Wipeout Zone to take home a cool $50,000. Before they can do so, players must first face the Buzz Saw, which greets contestants head on, leaving them feeling the winter black and blues. Then they'll take on the world famous Big Balls -- and can earn an extra $500 if they can clutch the Snowman perched atop the fourth Big Ball -- followed by the Snow Fall, where there's a little bit of snow but a whole lot of fall. From there, players have an all-access pass to The Penguin Party, where they get to shake it up and get smacked down till they drop! Hosted by John Anderson (ESPN's "SportsCenter"), John Henson (E! Entertainment's "Talk Soup") and new co-host Vanessa Lachey ("ABC's "True Beauty"), "Wipeout" airs THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network.

Each week, 24 energetic new contestants of all ages, shapes and sizes go head to head through four rounds of demanding but hilarious obstacle courses to win the title of "Wipeout Champion" and the $50,000 grand prize. In the end only one contestant will be victorious; everyone else will Wipeout!

"Wipeout" executive producers are Matt Kunitz and Scott Larsen. Shye Sutherland, Kevin Wehrenberg, Trice Barto and J. Rupert Thompson are co-executive producers. The series is produced by Endemol USA. David Goldberg is the chairman of Endemol North America.

About Endemol USA

Endemol USA is a leading producer of television programming specializing in reality and non-scripted genres for network and cable television. The company produces the break-out hits "Deal or No Deal," "Wipeout," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" and "Big Brother." Endemol USA is a division of the Endemol Group, a prominent international content developer, producer and distributor of television and online programming. The company, headquartered in the Netherlands, has subsidiaries and joint ventures in 25 countries, including the major European markets, the U.S., South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. Endemol is owned by a consortium consisting of Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, Mediaset Group and Cyrte Group. For more information, please visit http://www.endemolusa.tv. Endemol is a privately held company.

"Wipeout" is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5/1 channel surround sound. This program carries a TV-PG,L parental guideline.

For more information on "Wipeout," visit ABC.com