International Pole Sports Federation
National Competitions/Championships
Rules and Regulations
www.polesports.org
COPYRIGHT© IPSF August 2015
This is an open working document and subject to change
International Pole Sports Federation
Rules and Regulations
Contents
1. Definitions 3
2. National Competition Rules 3
2.1. Divisions and categories 3
2.2. Athletes selection process 5
2.3. Application process 6
2.4. Athletes registration process 6
2.5. Music choice 7
2.6. Performance time 7
2.7. Costume 8
2.8. Grips 9
2.9. Hair and Makeup 10
2.10. Stage 10
2.11. Poles 10
2.12. Filming 10
2.13. Results 10
2.14. Prizes 11
2.15. Rights and Responsibilities of the Athletes 11
2.16. Rights and Responsibilities of the Organiser 12
2.17. Penalties 12
2.18. Disqualification 13
3. Medical and Doping Regulations 13
3.1. Sanctions with Doping 13
3.2. Sex reassignment in Sport 14
4. Judging 14
5. System of complaints and appeals 14
1. Definitions
Athlete shall refer to the person invited to participate in the competition.
Category shall refer to the age groups and gender in each divisions.
Competition shall refer to all IPSF approved competitions.
Division shall refer to the level of difficulty of the competition.
Document shall refer to this entire document.
IPSF shall refer to the International Pole Sports Federation.
Organiser shall refer to the organiser of an IPSF endorsed competition.
Routine shall refer to the athlete’s programme from the start to the finish and is to include spins, transitions, inverts, holds, poses, tricks, lifts, acrobatics, gymnastics, slides, climbs, catches, drops, splits and floor work.
WPSC shall refer to the World Pole Sports Championships
2. National Competition Rules
2.1. Divisions and categories
2.2.1 Each of the following Elite categories must be opened at national level for WPSC qualification.
· Seniors Women
· Seniors Men
· Masters 40+
· Masters 50+
· Doubles Mixed
· Juniors
· Novice*
*Novice category: If an athlete who is under 10 years old should win a national competition, he/she may not compete at WPSC. The minimum age requirement for the WPSC is 10 years old on the date of the WPSC.
Age eligibility for each category is determined by the athlete’s age at the end of the competitive year, on the date of the World Pole Sports Championship.
· Novice – Ages 6-14 on the date of the WPSC
· Junior – Ages 15-17 on the date of the WPSC
· Seniors – Ages 18-39 on the date of the WPSC
· Masters 40+ – Age 40+ on the date of the WPSC
· Masters 50+ – Age 50+ on the date of the WPSC
· Doubles – open age categories
2.2.2 The following divisions can be included in national and open competitions:
Amateurs 1
Athletes who have basic experience and who are able to choose elements only with lowest technical values, may apply to participate in the Amateurs 1 division.
No applicant is allowed to enter the Amateurs division if they have:
· Competed in an Amateur 2, Professionals or Elite division in any past years of any national IPSF competition and/or
· Placed in any past years of a national IPSF competition in the top 3 places in an Amateurs 1 division and/or
· Is, or has been an instructor / teacher / trainer in the pole sport/pole dance area.
· Has received financial compensation for pole performances or promotions.
Amateurs 1 must perform 3 strength elements, 3 flexibility elements, 1 spin on a static pole, 1 spin on a spinning pole and one dead lift. See IPSF Code of Points on compulsory point requirements for more details.
Amateurs 2
Athletes who have basic experience and who are able to choose elements with low to middle technical values, may apply to participate in the Amateurs 2 division.
No applicant is allowed to enter the Amateurs 2 division if they have:
· Competed in Professionals or Elite division in any past years of any national IPSF competition and/or
· Placed in any past years of a national IPSF competition in the top 3 places in an Amateurs 2 division and/or
· Is, or has been an instructor / teacher / trainer in the pole sport/pole dance area.
· Received financial compensation for pole performances or promotions.
Amateurs 2 must perform 3 strength elements, 3 flexibility elements, 1 spin on a static pole, 1 spin on a spinning pole and one dead lift. See IPSF Code of Points on compulsory point requirements for more details.
Professionals
Athletes who have a good amount of experience and who are able to choose elements with higher technical value may apply to compete in the Professional division if they are:
· Students of intermediate/advanced classes or
· Are, or have been instructors / teachers / trainers and/or
· Athletes who have competed in a Professionals division in any of past years of an national IPSF competition and/or
· Athletes who have placed in any past years in a national IPSF competition in the top 3 places in an Amateurs 2 division
· Athletes who have received financial compensation for pole performances or promotions.
No applicants are allowed to enter the Professionals division who have:
· Competed in Elite division in any of past years of a national IPSF competition and/or
· Placed twice in any past years of a national IPSF competition in the top 3 places in Professionals division
Professionals must perform 4 strength elements, 4 flexibility elements, 1 spin on a static pole, 1 spin on a spinning pole and one aerial dead lift.
Elite
The Elite division is for top athletes who are able to choose elements with the highest technical value, and who strive to compete with other top athletes and become a part of their national team to represent their country:
· Students of the advanced classes or
· Instructors / teachers / trainers, both past and present and/or
· Athletes who have competed in an Elite division in any past years of a national IPSF competition and/or
· Athletes who have placed twice in any past years of a national competition in the top 3 places in a Professionals division and/or
Elite must perform 4 strength elements, 4 flexibility elements, 1 spin on a static pole, 1 spin on a spinning pole and one aerial dead lift.
*Please note: Amateur 2 and Professional athletes, who place in the top 3 may compete a second year in the same division.
2.2. Athletes selection process
2.2.3 Athlete’s participation is by qualification, i.e. preliminaries or regional heats. Deadlines must be strictly adhered to. If an athlete is late in applying then they cannot compete. All athletes will be given deductions for late forms and late music.
2.2.4 All eligible athletes must compete in the preliminaries in order to win a place in the finals.
2.2.5 Athletes are allowed one (1) performance in the preliminaries to win a place in the finals.
2.2.6 An athlete may only restart their performance in the following cases:
· A technical fault with music.
· A health and safety fault e.g. a problem with unsafe equipment such as a pole falling or cleaning fluid on the floor. This does not include slippery poles as this is subjective to each athlete.
· A major costume malfunction.
· At the discretion of the head judge.
Please note: If an athlete chooses to continue their performance regardless of the technical fault (for example music), they will not be allowed to restart their performance.
2.2.7 The top athletes with the highest scores in each category will go through to the finals.
2.2.8 Number of finalists for Elite categories*:
· 10 finalists for Seniors Women, Seniors Men and Doubles category. A maximum of 13 athletes may be allowed upon request, on the condition this would eliminate the necessity for preliminaries for those categories. 5 to 10 finalists for open categories – Masters Women, Masters Men, Juniors and Novices.
*The exact number of finalists for open categories will be announced after applications close and the total number of participants is known. All Elite categories must be held to allow athletes in that category to compete for a place in the WPSC; even if only 1 athlete applies.
2.2.7 Winners are the top athletes with the highest scores in their competitive category. Should two athletes have the same final score the athlete with the highest score in technical deductions shall be declared the winner. Should two athletes have the same technical deduction score, the athlete with the highest score in technical bonuses shall be declared the winner, thereafter the compulsory score and finally artistic and choreography score will be taken into account.
2.2.8 The title of National Pole Sports Champion 20XX in all categories will be a lifetime title, unless a sanction has been placed on the athlete.
2.2.9 The selection process can be specified by the Organiser of the national competition.
2.2.10 All applicants of national competitions must have citizenship or residency of the country they are competing in except when competing in an Open Championships.
2.3. Application process
2.3.1 Failure to comply with the following may result in disqualification from the competition. See also Head Judges penalties in the Code of Points.
All athletes must:
· Download an application form from the organiser’s website, fill it in, complete, sign and return the application form to the organisers email address by the deadline
· Pay the application fee, which is non-refundable. Application fees and payment details are to be found on the application form.
· Send their music in the format specified by the organiser by the given deadline (See Head Judges penalties in the Code of points).
· Send their compulsory form by the deadline given by the organiser. (See Head Judges penalties in the Code of points).
Please note: Handwritten forms will not be accepted. Signatures may be typed .
· Provide information about their legal gender. A copy of their birth certificate must be submitted upon request. See IPSF rules and regulations about gender.
2.3.2 All applications for National competitions should be completed in the national language. All applications for Open competitions should be completed in English.
2.3.3 All athletes should be fit, healthy and not knowingly pregnant. Upon request the athlete may be required to produce documentation from a doctor as confirmation of good health and fitness level. Information will be held confidentially.
2.3.4 All athletes wishing to use grip gloves are required to produce a written letter from their doctor confirming that the athlete suffers from hyperhidrosis (sweaty hands) or similar.
2.3.5 All athletes must disclose if they have been previously disqualified from any competition.
2.3.6 Athletes may only compete in a National competition if they have citizenship and or permanent residency in that country. In the case of dual citizenship, the athlete may only represent this country in the WPSC. Athletes wishing to change their country of representation must allow for one competitive year before the changeover.
2.3.7. Applicants under the age of 18 may only apply for the competition by way of written permission signed by a parent or by a legal guardian. Documentation must be provided upon request.
2.4. Athletes registration process
In the case of an athlete not showing up to registration without a legitimate reason, the athlete will be banned from all IPSF endorsed competitions all over the world for a period of one year. Names of banned athletes will be published on www.polesports.org. Athletes may only cancel participation a maximum of 21 working days prior to the competition. Exceptions being medical reasons and emergencies in which medical documentation and proof of travel ticket must be provided to the Organiser for confirmation a minimum of one day prior to the competition. Athletes not showing on the day of registration due to an emergency will have a maximum of seven days after the competition has ended to provide necessary proof of documentation. No exceptions will be made. See also: IPSF No Show Policy
2.4.1 All athletes must arrive and register at the time designated by the Organiser unless written permission is received.
2.4.2 If in the country of athlete’s origin both a passport and an identity card are used, both should be brought with them.
2.4.3 All athletes, including doubles, must provide proof of citizenship or residency of the country they are competing in (or representing in the case of an Open Championships). This must show a minimum date of ninety (90) days prior to the preliminaries. Proof must be in correspondence with the requirements of the country, e.g. green card, passport, ID card, residency papers, etc.
2.4.4 All athletes must sign a confirmation of the following at the time of registration:
· Rules and Regulations were read and accepted.
· The IPSF Code of Ethics was read, accepted and the athlete agrees to behave in a manner befitting a professional sports person.
· All expenses incurred by the athlete are the responsibility of the athlete and not the Organiser.
· Waive all image rights and agreement that the images can be used for promotion of pole sports around the world. Athletes will not receive any compensation for photos and videos taken during the event.
· To be interviewed, filmed and or photographed by the media.
· To take part in anti-doping testing in accordance to the WADA Code.
· To enter the National Championships at their own risk. Any injuries or accidents that may occur are the responsibility of the athlete and not the Organiser.
· To respect and follow rehearsal and performance times.
· To wear their club/regional tracksuit at all times except for during their performance.
· To be present at the medal ceremony unless a medical emergency has occurred.
2.4.5 In the case of causing disruptions to the competition athletes may incur penalties or be disqualified in accordance with the published IPSF Rules and Regulations.
2.5. Music choice
2.5.1. Athletes have a personal choice of music; this can be a mix of various music and artists.
2.5.2. The music at the National Championship should be instrumental only. Lyrics/words are not permitted. Vocals may only be permitted if used as an instrumental accompaniment.