1. RCA Rules of Racing – 2018 Amendments
RCA umpire training program

2. RCA Rules of Racing – 2018 Amendments
INTENDED AUDIENCE
All RCA Umpires
RCA Clinicians
PREPARATION AND/OR KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED
Sound understanding of the 2013 edition of the RCA Rules of Racing
Familiarity with the changes to the Rules of Racing approved by the RCA Board of Directors for the next quadrennial
Only pertinent changes to the 2013 Rules of Racing are discussed in this presentation
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

3. RCA Rules of Racing – 2018 Amendments
RULES REVIEW
The RCA Rules of Racing, including Appendices may be amended once during the quadrennial following the Summer Olympic Games.
Extraordinary amendments may also be made by the RCA Board of Directors at any time, subject to approval by RCA Members at the next meeting of the Membership.
CONTENT OF THIS PRESENTATION
Amendments to the RCA Rules of Racing that are pertinent to all RCA Umpires
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

4. Competitors 2.1 DEFINITION OF A COMPETITOR
RCA will be drafting a Transgender Policy
Any rower who defines themselves as transgender must meet criteria as outlined in the RCA Transgender Policy
2.3 CATEGORIES OF ROWERS
All competitors must be able to prove age and identity by producing government issued documentation containing a photo, upon request
RCA recognizes the following categories of competitors for men and women:
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

5. Competitors 2.3 CATEGORIES OF ROWERS Under 17
a rower or coxswain up until Dec 31 of the year in which he/she turns 16
Under 19
a rower or coxswain up until Dec 31 of the year in which he/she turns 18
Under 23
a rower or coxswain up until Dec 31 of the year in which he/she turns 22
Senior
a rower or coxswain of any age
Master
a rower may compete as a Master from the beginning of the year in which he/she attains the age of 21
Canada Games
rowers or coxswains are eligible to compete if they are under 21 on Dec 31 of the year in which the Games are held
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

6. Competitors 2.3.9 HEALTH & FITNESS
Each competitor shall be responsible for his/her own health and fitness.
In the case of a minor, the club, province, or, other organization who enters the competitor in a regatta shall be responsible for the health and fitness of the competitor.
2.5 COXSWAIN’S WEIGHTS
The minimum weight of a coxswain shall be
For a U17/U19 crew: 45 kg
For a Senior/Master crew: 55 kg
Coxswains may not carry more than 15 kg deadweight
Coxswains needing more than 15kg to make the minimum weight will not be allowed to race
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

7. Competitors 2.7 MASTERS ROWERS
A Masters rower may not have been a member of any team representing Canada at an international competition during the previous 2 years to the date of the competition
Two new Age Classifications have been added for fairness:
K age: 85 – 89
L age: 90 and over
2.8 MASTERS AGE ADJUSTED TIME
The term ‘handicap’ has been replaced with ‘Age Adjusted Time’
Age Adjusted Time systems are moved to Appendix 5
The Organizing Committee calculates Age Adjusted Times and applies them to the finish times
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

8. Competitors 2.9 MIXED EVENTS
Mixed events may be held in any category (previously it was limited to Masters)
2.10 LIGHTWEIGHT COMPETITORS
Scheduled Lightweight events at regattas must include weigh-ins
2.12 PARA COMPETITORS
‘Para Rowing’ is the correct terminology (no longer ‘Adaptive’)
There are 3 Para categories:
PR1: Arms and shoulders
PR2: Trunk and arms
PR3: Leg, trunk and arms
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

9. Equipment 3.1 CLASSES OF BOATS
Boat classes for all forms of rowing are neatly summarized in a table
Includes Para and Other classifications
OPEN
PARA BOATS
OTHER
Single Scull (1x)
Single Scull (PR1 1x, PR2 1x)*
Coastal C1x
Double Sculls (2x)
Double Sculls (PR2 2x, PR3 2x)*
Coastal C2x
Pair (2-)
Pair (PR 3 2-)*
Quadruple Sculls (4x)
Four (4-)
Coxed Four (4+)
Coxed Four (PR3 4+)*
Coastal C4+
Coxed Quad (4x+)
Coastal C4x+
Fixed Seat Six (6+)
Eight (8+)
*As defined in FISA Para Rowing Competition Regulations.
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

10. Equipment 3.1 WEIGHT OF BOATS
Boat weighing may be required for NRC/ High Performance team selection events.
The minimum weights for boats are given below.
BOAT TYPE
MIN WEIGHT (Kg)
Single Scull (1x) 14
Double Sculls (2x) 27
Pair (2-)
Four (4-) 50
Coxed Four (4+) 51
Quadruple Sculls (4x) 52
Eight (8+) 96
PARA BOAT TYPE
MIN WEIGHT (Kg)
Single Scull (PR 1x)
Including pontoons 24
Double Sculls (PR 2x) 37
Pair (PR3 2-)
No pontoons 27
Coxed Four (PR3 4+) 51
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

11. Equipment 3.2 BOAT WEIGHING PROCEDURE
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

12. Equipment 3.2 WEIGHT OF BOATS (PENALTIES)
The penalty for having raced in an underweight boat shall be that the crew is relegated to last place in the particular race.
If two or more boats in the same race are underweight, they shall all be relegated and they shall be ranked in the descending order of their respective boat weights on the second weighing.
If their boat weights on the second weighing are identical they shall be ranked by their order of finish in the race.
If the crew races again in an underweight boat in a later round of the same event, then the penalty shall be the exclusion of the crew.
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

13. Equipment 3.5 QUICK RELEASE FOOT STRETCHERS
The rule has been re-written to be consistent with the FISA approach.
The amended rule
retains the 7-cm maximum heel lift requirement for shoes that remain fixed to the shell,
recognizes quick release shoes (e.g. Shimano type):
for shoes that do not remain fixed in the shell, the 7cm maximum heel lift is not required
However, each shoe/device must be able to be released by the rower without using his/her hands, or with a single quick hand action of pulling on one easily accessible strap or release device
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

14. Equipment 3.6 UNIFORM Hats no longer need to be similar
3.9 PARA ROWING EQUIPMENT
Equipment shall be as specified in the FISA Para Rowing Competition Regulations
The current FISA regulation will be provided in the RCA Rules of Racing
Noticeable changes:
non-compliant strapping and/or in the case of a PR1x rower if the lumbar region of the rower does not stay in contact with the seat when reaching forward, shall be that the crew is relegated to last place in the particular
Eyewear for Visually Impaired (VI) has been deleted.
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

15. Regatta Facilities 4.1 LENGTH, MARKING AND NUMBER OF LANES OF COURSE
2000m straight Seniors, U17, U19, U23, Para
1000m straight Masters
Minimum lane width 13.5m
Standard course normally has 6 lanes
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

16. Regatta Organization 5.1 DUTIES OF THE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE (OC)
Consult with the Chief Umpire (CU) in preparation of the sanction document
5.2 REGATTA CHAIR
Ensures that the CU is part of the regatta planning process
Collaborate with the CU to ensure safety and fairness of the regatta, and that the regatta is run in accordance with the RCA Rules of Racing
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

17. Advertising 6.1 GENERAL RULES
Previous restrictions on advertising content, placement, size, and density of advertisement are removed
Advertisements promoting products containing tobacco and products containing alcohol (including wine, beer, and liquor), are prohibited.
6.3 OC EQUIPMENT AND REGATTA INSTALLATIONS
The OC may limit advertising matters carried on any equipment provided by the OC, or on installations on the course or in the medal presentation area
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

18. Safety and Fairness 8 SAFETY AND FAIRNESS
These has been discussed with the CU’s in the level 3 clinic
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

19. Racing 10.1 THE START ZONE The Start Zone is defined as the first 100m
The Starter may invite crews into the Start Zone at any time after the crews from the previous race are out of the Start Zone
10.3 STARTING PROCEDURE (WITH FLAGS)
‘Red Flag’ at the start is replaced by ‘Start Flag’
The Start Flag shall be a red flag with a diagonal white cross
10.4 FOR PARA EVENTS (VISUALLY IMPAIRED)
Wording for visually impaired rowers changed to: “Attention, Start Flag” instead of “Attention, Red Flag”
Similar language for Quick Starts
For starts with lights, the wording did not change: “Attention, Red Light”
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

20. Racing 10.9 DAMAGE WHILE IN THE START ZONE
Damage in the Start Zone (i.e. 100m broken equipment rule) is no longer recognized in the RCA Rules of Racing
Aligner no longer needs to hold up the flag for 20 seconds
10.10 INTERFERENCE
To make wording more specific, “Umpire” has been replaced everywhere with “Race Umpire”.
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

21. Racing 10.12 FINISH OF THE RACE
“Principal Umpire” is replaced with “primary Race Umpire”
The primary Race Umpire shall decide regarding any objections, and whether the race was in order.
If the Race Umpire deems the race unfair, or if a crew has raised an objection, the Race Umpire shall raise the red flag. The Finish Tower acknowledges by raising a red flag.
The Race Umpire shall inform the crews and the Judges at the Finish of his/her decision on the objection, and record the time that the decision was conveyed to the crews
In all cases, the Judges at the Finish must not announce the “official” result of the race
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

22. Racing 10.13 OBJECTIONS AT THE FINISH
In all cases where there is an objection, the Race Umpire shall hold up a red flag
If a Race Umpire allows an objection, they should communicate the decision to the crews in the race, to the Judges at the Finish and to the CU
If a Race Umpire does not allow an objection, the Race Umpire shall ask the objecting crew, and any other affected crew, if they intend to protest the decision
If a crew indicates their intention to protest, the Race Umpire will notify the Judges at the Finish and the CU of an impending protest and raise the red flag
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

23. Racing 10.13 OBJECTIONS AT THE FINISH [CONTINUED]
In all cases, when communicating the decision to a crew(s), the Race Umpire shall advise the crew(s) that:
They have the right to make a protest
Inform the crew(s) of the time
Advise the crew(s) that if they intend to protest, that they should do so within 1 hour, in writing, to the CU, together with a deposit of CAD$300.00
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

24. Protests, outcome of protests, and appeals
Crews can raise an objection at any time during the race (including the Start)
The following may lodge a protest:
A crew that has raised an objection on the race course, or, before leaving the finish area of the race course
A crew whose objection has been rejected
Crews affected by the acceptance of the objection
A crew disputing the published results provided the dispute is not related to a matter which should have been raised as an objection
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

25. Protests, outcome of protests, and appeals
10.16 OUTCOME OF THE PROTESTS
The penalty options that the Board of the Jury may assign include:
Reprimand (unchanged)
Yellow Cards (unchanged)
Red Card (previously ‘Exclusion’)
Disqualification (unchanged)
Re-row (unchanged)
Dismissal of the protest (unchanged)
Relegation (new)
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

26. Protests, outcome of protests, and appeals
10.17 PENALTIES
Yellow Card
A Yellow Card must be verbally communicated by “name of rower/crew/coach, offense, yellow card”
If the umpire has a paper yellow card, the card shall be shown to the offending rower, crew, or coach
Red Card
A Red Card must be verbally communicated as above
If the umpire has a paper red card, the card shall be shown to the offending rower, crew, or coach
A Red Card excludes a rower/crew/coach from a particular event
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

27. Protests, outcome of protests, and appeals
10.17 PENALTIES [CONTINUED]
Relegation
A rower or crew is relegated to last place in a race
Relegation may only be used in cases where provided for in these rules:
3.2 Boat weighing
3.9 Para rowing equipment compliance
10.19 APPEALS
The sum to accompany appeals is increased to CAD$
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

28. The jury and support to the jury
11.11 CHIEF UMPIRE
‘Assistant Chief Umpire’ is changed to ‘Deputy Chief Umpire (“DCU”)’
The DCU is a certified Level 3 Umpire
Both the CU and the DCU are authorized to make extraordinary decisions
DUTIES OF THE RACE UMPIRE
Zonal Umpiring: a new rule which may be implemented at RCA HP team selection regattas
2018 amendments to the rca rules of racing
Jan 2018

29. THANK YOU !