IHSA

IHSA Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes - 2006-07

Boys/girls Gymnastics Advisory Committee

March 23, 2007

The IHSA Boys and Girls Gymnastics Advisory Committee met at Palatine High School, on Wednesday, March 21, 2007, beginning at 11:00 a.m. Committee members present were: Blaise Blasko, Glen Ellyn; Brad Foerch, Naperville (North); Judy Harwood, Lincolnshire (Stevenson); Kathy Krebs, Crete; Howard Rubin, Schaumburg. IHSA Assistant Executive Director Kurt Gibson was also in attendance. Not in attendance was James Ferguson, Hinsdale (Central).

TERMS AND CONDITIONS RECOMMENDATIONS

(Girls ) Item II. B. Sectional Meets

Recommendation: Girls’ Sectional Gymnastics Meets will be held on Monday-Thursday of Week 32 in the IHSA Standardized Calendar. Friday and Saturday will be used only in the event of cancellations on Monday-Thursday due to weather. If Friday and Saturday need to be used due to cancellations, an attempt will be made to schedule no more than one meet on each day. Sectional host sites will be assigned by the IHSA.

Rationale: In order to maintain scoring consistency throughout sectional week, it is imperative to have the same judges working all the sectional meets in the state series. Requiring sectional hosts to schedule their sectionals during the week will enable judges to avoid conflicts that occur later in the week, which ultimately prevent the same judges from working the entire week, thereby leading to the lack of consistency with scores.

Approved

(Girls ) VI. E. 1. Tournament Structure and Time Schedule

Recommendation: Order of Performance-Regional/Sectional: Competitors shall perform in order according to a rotational system which shall be outlined in a link found on the forms section of the IHSA Girls’ Gymnastics web site. The random draw for sectional rotation shall occur after the regional hosts have been determined. When a conflict in two events occurs with the order of performance for a competitor, the competitor will be dropped by the Superior Judge in the second event three or four competitors down in the order of performance. If a team conflict occurs, the team shall be dropped in order of competition as a team. No individual or team will be dropped into another team’s rotation.

Rationale: By waiting until after the regional hosts have been determined to conduct the sectional rotation draw, schools will no longer be able to pick a certain night to host a regional in order to set up the best rotation for their school at the sectional meet, thereby creating a fairer playing field for all.

Approved

3. (Girls ) VIII. C. 1. Tournament Rules

Recommendation:Equipment: Sting Mats/Safety Collars: At regional and sectional levels, schools will be permitted to use their own sting mats and safety collars. At the state meet, schools will not be permitted to use sting mats and safety collars other than those provided by the state meet hosts.

Rationale: Providing the necessary equipment is a condition of hosting, and state series hosts should be able to provide safety mats for competition. Additionally, having each school bring essentially the same piece of equipment to a meet creates a potential storage problem for the host and slows the pace of the meet down as mats are changed for each school/competitor.

Approved

4. (Girls ) New VIII. C. 4. Uneven Bars (Current Item 4 will be moved to 5)

Recommendation: Schools hosting a regional, sectional, or state final meet shall only provide the super-wide uneven bars during competition.

Rationale: This recommendation minimizes the risk to competitors who are accustomed to using the super-wide uneven bars during the regular season. It removes the potential interference beyond the control of the competitor during her performance by offering a more regulated piece of equipment for competition. Those girls who don’t use the super-wide uneven bars during the regular season won’t be impaired because they will still be able to keep their normal settings, albeit on the super-wide bars.

Approved

5. (Girls ) New Item IX. M.Tournament Policies

Recommendation:At no state series meet shall any school hold any type of special recognition or specific celebration for any athlete, coach, or official.

Rationale: Celebratory demonstrations during the state meet series may be construed as an unfair advantage during the state meet series. All host site competitions should be conducted in the same manner to ensure fairness for all competitors.

Approved

6. (Girls ) New Item IX. Tournament Policies

Recommendation: Sectional hosts shall provide adult timers and scorekeepers for each sectional meet.

Rationale: Adult timers and score keeps provide more accuracy to both tasks that can often times lead to deductions for overtime or inaccurate score keeping.

Approved (as modified to state: Sectional hosts shall not use high school students as timers and scorekeepers for each Sectional meet.)

7. (Boys) III. G: ON LINE ENTRIES LIST OF PARTICIPANTS:

Recommendation:G. Online List of Participants
The online List of Participants on which each school will list the names of not more than twenty-five (25) individual boys as a team roster. This list shall indicate which contestants are entered in the various events. Only those competitors whose names are included on the online List of Participants for the specific meet may be in uniform. The online List of Participants must be completed on-line no later than 4:00 p.m. Monday of Week 42. If a school does not submit the On-line List of Participants by the deadline, coaches and/or participants from the school are subject to sanctions which could include, but not be limited to, being ruled ineligible to coach or compete in the State Series. A school may enter up to five (5) contestants in each individual event. As many as all five (5) entries may be All Around contestants. Any of these contestants may qualify for individual advancement.

Changes may be made in the names included on the List of Participants at any time through the completion of the scratch meeting held prior to the sectional or state final meets. The original online List of Participants and the order of performance shall apply to each level of the state series.

Rationale: National Federation Rules allow for five competitors with no all around man. This allows for increased individual participation and a stronger overall team line-up. The All Around will still remain as an event at state, invitational, and championship meets

Approved

8. (Boys) VI. A. TOURNAMENT STRUCTURE AND TIME SCHEDULE

Recommendation: Sectional Host: The IHSA Office will assign all schools entering the state series into one of five
(5) Sectional Complexes. On Tuesday of week 39 in the IHSA Standardized Calendar, the IHSA will determine the five (5) sectional hosts based on the seeding information provided by all teams entered in the state series on the Team Seeding Instructions and Report Form. Once each entered team has submitted their seeding score, the IHSA Office shall assign teams to a sectional complex in the following manner:
                        Sectional A: 1, 10, 11, 20, 21, 30, 31, 40, 41, 50, 51, 60
                        Sectional B: 2, 9, 12, 19, 22, 29, 32, 39, 42, 49, 52, 59
                        Sectional C: 3, 8, 13, 18, 23, 28, 33, 38, 43, 48, 53, 58
                        Sectional D: 4, 7, 14, 17, 24, 27, 34, 37, 44, 47, 54, 57
                        Sectional E:   5, 6, 15, 16, 25, 26, 35, 36, 45, 46. 55, 56
            The five (5) highest seeded teams in the state will have the first option to host a sectional if its principal has signed the Sectional Host Consent Form, thereby agreeing to host. If the highest seeded team can not host, then the next highest seeded team in the assigned sectional will be given the opportunity to host, assuming its principal has signed the Sectional Host Consent Form. Once the sectional hosts have been determined, the highest seeded team hosting will have the first choice for the date of its sectional. The remaining hosts will select their dates of competition based on their seed in like fashion.

Rationale: This format is similar to that used for the first level of competition in girls’ gymnastics. This format would allow for teams to be separated according to their performance during the regular season and not be as dependant on geography for this initial assignment.

Rejected

9.         (Boys) Item VIII. K. Substitutions
Recommendation: The Sectional and State Final Meet Managers shall hold a coaches meeting prior to the meet. Team substitutions and scratching competitor(s) will be made at this time. The head coach may also make changes in the order of performance for the team competitors from a school. No changes or corrections in the competitors and order of performance shall be permitted following the coaches meeting except in the case of injury or illness as provided in these Terms and Conditions.
            1) Team substitution prior to meet:     Competitors who are substituted under the provisions in these Terms and Conditions may return to team competition in the state series if their team qualifies to advance. A team substitute’s name must be included on the List of Participants.
            2) Team substitutions during a meet:     The coach must notify the Meet Referee of any such team substitution before the team begins its competition in an event. Substitutions in the line up shall be permitted in any event, provided the changes are made before the start of an individual event for that team provided the name of the substitute appears on the List of Participants. The substitution is made before the team begins its competition in an event, and no change is made in the order of performance.
            3) Individual substitutions:     No substitutions shall be made for ranked or at large individual qualifiers in any event.

Rationale: Clarifies the National Federation rules for substitution. Uses the same format and language as in girl’s Terms and Conditions.

Approved

10. (Boys) Item IX. A. 1. Tournament Policies

Recommendation: State Final Passes: Team Qualifiers: One pass for each team member listed on the List of Participants (25).

Rationale: Boys gymnastics has 6 events with five competitors on each event. One competitor is an all around. A team can have a maximum of 25 participants on a team. III-G On line “List of Participants” in the Terms and Conditions has listed (25) individual boys as a maximum team roster.

Approved

11. (Boys) Item IX. A. 2. Tournament Policies

Recommendation: State Final Passes: Individual Qualifiers:
b) Maximum of three (3) passes for coaches provided they are listed on the List of Participants Form.

Rationale: Most programs in Illinois have 3 coaches. A common coaching format is for each coach to be responsible for 2 events, freshman through varsity. When a coach works with an athlete all season he should be allowed to coach him in the state series.

Rejected

12. (Boys) Item X. C. 2. Team Awards

Recommendation: State Final: Trophies will be presented to the top three placing teams at the State Final Meet. In addition, twenty five (25) team medallions shall be presented to the top three placing teams at the State Final Meet. In addition, one Superintendent’s, one Principal’s and one Athletic Director’s medallion for each of the top three teams will be awarded.

Rationale: A potential competitor listed on the List of Participants who has been on the team all season and during the state series should get a team medallion, and this recommendation reflects the amount of competitors a school may be able to list on the List of Participants from recommendation 8.

Rejected

ADMINISTRATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS

1. (Boys) Team Format

            This recommendation, if approved, would be reflected on the following forms:
                        Sectional Team Rotation
                        State Team Meet Placement of Competitors
                        State Meet Warm Up Schedule

Recommendation: During the Sectional and State Final competition, teams will maintain their rotation order throughout all six events.

Rationale: The previous format had teams flip their order after the first three events, which causes a delay in meet time when events have to wait for other events to end. When there is no flip flop of teams half way through the mee,t events can continue.

Approved

2. Update information in manual to reflect that schools can provide either a cassette tape or a CD for their floor exercise music. In the girls’ gymnastics manual on the state final information page, schools are informed that only cassette tapes can be used. Making this modest adjustment reflects what is currently being practiced.

3. Add a new question to the facilities survey on the IHSA Schools Center for gymnastics that asks member schools if they have a set of super wide uneven bars. Having super wide uneven bars will not be a requirement for hosting. However, a significant number of competitors use super wide uneven bars during the regular season, and it will be helpful to know if a school won’t be able to offer such equipment during the state series.

ITEMS OF GENERAL DISCUSSION

1. The committee reviewed the minutes of the 2005-06 advisory committee meeting.
2. The committee heard reports on the 2006 boys’ gymnastics state final at Barrington High School and the recently-completed 2007 girls’ gymnastics state final at Palatine High School. Both events were well-run, and thanks were extended to the administrations at both schools for their efforts. The committee also discussed the need and importance for the warm-up gym at Palatine for the girls’ state final to be properly matted and have an additional set of bars, a strip for tumbling runs, and a balance beam for competitors to properly prepare themselves for competition.
3. The committee discussed possible future recommendations from the girls’ coaches association that may offer a change to the setup of the state series.
4. The committee discussed the amount of awards offered at the boys’ and girls’ state finals. Committee members were encouraged to have their administration contact the IHSA Board of Directors and Staff to ask for a review of the association’s awards policy should they feel more awards need to be given.
5. The committee discussed and reaffirmed that all state series meets should be held at member schools and not at some off campus facility. The committee discussed the equipment used during the two most recent state series and affirmed that the sites and equipment used were in compliance with NFHS standards.