Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations 2015 Track and Field and Cross Country Rules Changes Editorial Changes Points of Emphasis

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations

Competitor’s Uniform - Jewelry Former Rules 4-3-3,  The wearing of jewelry is no longer prohibited during warm-ups and competition under NFHS rules State associations may adopt a more restrictive rule Ring Earring

Competitor’s Uniform Watch  Wearing of a watch continues to be permitted Use of GPS function is not permitted By state association policy the wearing of a watch could be prohibited

Competitor’s Uniforms Medical Alert  Medical alerts are permitted  Alert should be visible for risk minimization

General Rules for Throwing and Jumping Events Rules 6-2-9, 6-4-9a, 6-5-9a, h, , d, e, f  Clarifies that once the competitor’s name has been called, a trial needs to be initiated, rather than completed, within the prescribed time limit

General Rules for Throwing and Jumping Events Rules 6-2-9, 6-4-9a, 6-5-9a, h, , d, e, f  A trial, with attempt initiated within prescribed time, completed beyond time is legal Providing all other aspects of attempt are conducted according to the event rules

General Rules for Throwing and Jumping Events Rules NOTE, 6-6-9, NOTE 1  If a legal implement breaks during a trial taken in accordance with the rules Performance is not recorded and replacement trial is awarded  If a legal implement breaks upon completion of trial that was executed in accordance with the rules Performance mark is recorded and no replacement trial awarded

General Rules for Throwing Events Rules 6-4-9f, 6-5-9g,  The competitor must still exit, as required by rules for shot put, discus and javelin, after the implement has landed  Competitor may exit once the implement has landed and no longer has requirment to exit under control

General Rules for Throwing Events Rules 6-4-9f, 6-5-9g, f  Removes the requirement for the official to call “Mark”  Once the implement has landed the throw is measured unless there is an illegal throw resulting in a foul  A foul can be signaled verbally, “Foul,” or with a flag if being used  Competitor shall exit circle or runway according to rules once implement has landed

General Rules – Vertical Jumps Rule  A crossbar displaced by a force disassociated with the competitor after he/she is legally and clearly over the crossbar shall not be a fault and is considered a successful attempt  Examples of disassociated force: Wind Rebound of the pole off planting box padding

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations 2015 Track and Field and Cross Country Editorial Changes

Infractions in Races Rules , f  Removes unnecessary language “impedes” as rule addresses the infraction by term “interfere”

Meet Officials Rule  Additional language added to clarify that the meet official may allow a competitor to take trials in succession to accommodate being excused to participate in other events

Infractions in Races Not Run in Lanes Rules thru 4  Reorganizes Rule 5-13 for clarity Infractions are located in Articles 1 & 2 Non-infractions grouped and appear in Articles 3 & 4

Other Editorial Changes  4-6Added “and Conduct” to title of Section 6 to more clearly describe the articles addressed in the section  4-6-5eRemoved duplicity in the rule by combining letters e and g Communicating with a competitor through the use of any device, including electronically, during a race or trial  Added consistency in language to include reference to the coaches box and permits instruction through electronic means, as well as verbally A coach may instruct a competitor… Note 3

Other Editorial Changes  Deletes unnecessary language “stride” at end of sentence  6-2-5, The competitor with the best mark in the preliminaries has earned the right to make the last attempt of the competition and may choose to wait until after any excused competitors have taken all their trials  6-3-1height of does not apply

Other Editorial Changes  NOTE 3with flags placed flagged  6-3-2, 7-3-2For consistency, rearranged “height or distance” to “distance or height”  7-2-1In meets with limited entries, the games committee may allow all competitors just four trials.  7-3-2a(1)For clarity, rearranged “is better from either the preliminary trials or the finals” to “from either the preliminary trials or finals, is better."

Other Editorial Changes  7-3-2cA competitor shall be credited with his/her best achievement if it occurs in a jump-off for first place  , &17, , 7-6-8, Removed duplicate articles from the specific field event rules as they are already addressed in the General Rules for Field Events

Take Part. Get Set For Life.™ National Federation of State High School Associations 2015 Track and Field and Cross Country Points of Emphasis

Proper Cordoning Off of the Throwing Venue  Throwing events should be cordoned off and/or flagged properly for the safety of spectators, athletes and officials  Ropes, fences or flags should be set up well outside of the sector lines to minimize the risk of injury for spectators, competitors and officials  Spectator seating needs to be placed behind throwing area and away from landing area

Proper Cordoning Off of the Throwing Venue

Legal Implements Becoming Illegal  It is possible for an implement deemed legal to break and become illegal during an attempt The tip of a javelin could come off or the cording of the grip could unravel during flight  If the implement breaks during the attempt, the competitor will receive another trial and no penalty will be assessed  The broken implement will no longer be used in the competition unless it can be fixed to become legal

Legal Implements Becoming Illegal  The performance mark shall count and be recorded if an implement breaks upon landing Must have been executed in accordance with the rules of the event  No penalty is assessed, but the broken implement will no longer be used in competition unless it can be made legal

Displacement of the Crossbar  It is a foul if the competitor displaces the crossbar from the pins on which it originally rested with his/her body or the pole  A crossbar displaced by a force disassociated with the competitor and he/she has legally and clearly gone over the crossbar, is considered a successful attempt

Displacement of the Crossbar For example, a pole could rebound or change direction after hitting the plant box padding, causing the pole to displace the crossbar This should not result in a fault if the vault was clearly successful Wind may blow the crossbar off the pins causing it to fall even though the competitor has cleared the crossbar

Head Event Judge Mechanics – Throwing Events  After a throw has landed, the official marking the attempt immediately goes to the point of impact and marks the spot  Once the implement lands and the competitor should legally exit the ring, the judge will voice or use flags to indicate if a foul was committed  If the attempt was legal, the mark shall be measured and recorded

Prohibition of Wearing Jewelry Removed  Jewelry and hair accessories are no longer illegal An official may ask a competitor to remove an accessory if it is not properly secured or could damage equipment  Watches are legal in all track and field and cross country events State association policy may prohibit  Religious and medical alert medals are legal and no longer required to be taped to the body When wearing a medical alert, the alert should be visible for risk minimization

Prohibition of Wearing Jewelry Removed  Coaches retain the responsibility to not allow competitors to wear items dangerous to themselves or to equipment, such as landing system in high jump  Preserving the integrity of the sport, coaches should set and communicate expectation that jewelry, if worn, should not be dangerous and must be secure when worn

Uniform – Foundation Garment Rules 4-3-1c(7), 4-3-1c(7) NOTE, 9-6-1c(7) NOTE 2 Visible undergarment extends below the knees LEGAL Visible undergarments extend below knees Both must be same color ILLEGAL Foundation garment ends above knees LEGAL Foundation garments end above knees LEGAL

Rule 5-10 Articles 5-11 Passing the Baton 1.Acceleration Zone 2.Exchange Zone 3.Dropped Baton 4.Completion of the Exchange

NFHS Track and Field Pre-Meet Notes NFHS Track and Field Pre-Meet Notes are made possible through the cooperative efforts of the NFHS Track and Field Rules Committee and USA Track and Field Officials Training Subcommittee NFHS Track and Field Pre-Meet Notes will be available online at

■ Starting a Beginner ■ Basic Laws of Physics ■ Drills and Coaching Techniques Course Objectives More Information at nfhslearn.com! Units ■ Starting a beginner – teaching proper standing grip height, width of hands on pole, and position of hands on pole ■ How to instruct beginning level pole-vaulters through skill development drills and build confidence ■ Maintaining a safe practice and competition environment – proper pad placement and securing of vault mat pads ■ Problem Solving ■ Equipment and Facility ■ Interactive Exercise Coaching Pole Vault 4,423 delivered to date!

Coaching Track and Field ■ Types of races – sprint and endurance ■ Running form – proper posture, arm movement, and leg movement ■ Start and Drive phase – block and standing start ■ Types of jumps – horizontal and vertical ■ Jump elements – approach, take off, flight and landing ■ Throwing – basic skills for each event type ■ How to teach skills for correct form ■ Teaching progressions to combine skills into full movement Course Objectives Units More Information at nfhslearn.com! ■ Running ■ Jumping ■ Throwing 2,911 delivered to date!

NFHS Track and Field and Cross Country Publications  The Rules Book, Case Book, Officials Manual and Scorebooks can be ordered: Online at By calling UPDATED

NFHS E-books  Electronic versions of NFHS Rules and Case Books are now available for purchase as e-books  Apple users can visit iTunes for available books  Apple, Android and Kindle users can buy e-books from Amazon.com and view them through the Kindle app  $5.99 Visit for more informationwww.nfhs.org/ebooks

Interscholastic Officiating  Introduction to skills and concepts used as an official  Ideal for new officials or those in first few years of officiating  minutes to complete  Topics include: basics of becoming and staying an official, science of officiating, art of officiating, how to combine these skills for successful officiating  Course is FREE to any NFHS Officials Association member  Non-members course is $20  Contact NFHS Officials Department for details ( )

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