LORIS APPEAL

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHERE THE RULE IS WRITTEN THAT THE LORIS COACHES BASED THEIR APPEAL ON? WHERE IN THE RULE BOOK IS IT WRITTEN?

This is the file that is sent out at the beginning of the season each year to all coaches. Be sure to see rule 15 example B. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER


South Carolina Weight Management Procedures

2009-10 School Year

The following is a list of rules and policies that the SCHSL will as guidelines for the weight management program being implemented in South Carolina in the 2009-10 school year. For any questions on the following rules, please contact Roger Hazel at the High School League Office.

1. Test Date- June 1st will be the first date that testing may occur for the upcoming wrestling season. A school assessor can test athletes during the summer months and then put the information in the Optimal Performance Calculator on the NWCA website (www.nwcaonline.com).

2. Testing Athletes- All wrestlers in grades 9-12 will be tested by an assessor and have their data entered into the OPC.

3. Documentation- Each head coach will be responsible for having an Alpha Master Sheet. This sheet contains a list of all wrestlers who have passed the test and give the minimum weight that they can compete for that date in the season. This sheet can be printed off the NWCA Website using the coach’s username and password that they receive when they register their school with the NWCA.

4. Competition- No athlete may compete in an event until they have had their minimum weight established on the OPC and their name appears on the Alpha Master sheet. To do so, this means that they have passed hydration and had the skin fold test completed.

5. Assessors and Test administrators- A test administrator is a certified official who does the actual testing. This group includes certified school trainers, nurses, and doctors. An assessor is the person who actually puts the data into the OPC on the NWCA website. This person CAN be the test administrator, or any other school personnel chosen by the athletic director. However, the assessor CANNOT be the actual wrestling coach.

6. Materials- To complete testing, you must have a refractometer to measure the urine sample and a set of skin calipers. The refractormeter can be either the optical or digital type.

7. Re-testing- If an athlete fails the hydration, they must wait at least 48 hours before they are tested again.

8. Margin of Error- South Carolina will use a 2% margin of error for determining the minimum weight of a wrestler. This 2% will only be used for athletes who have 7% body fat or higher. The margin of error will be calculated automatically on the OPC for the state of South Carolina.

9. Athlete’s below 7% Body Fat- Athletes who measure below 7% body fat will wrestle at the weight class they establish during their hydration and body fat test. There is no exception that will allow athletes below 7% to drop down in weight.

10. Doctor’s Note- Athlete’s who are below 7% body fat will need a doctor’s note to compete. The doctor’s note should be taken to every event and the coach should be able to produce it if questioned. There will not be a specific form used by the doctor. All that is needed is the doctor’s statement that the athlete is below 7% body fat and is healthy enough to compete in wrestling.

11. Ineligible Wrestlers- Athletes who are ineligible to compete first semester can still have their minimum weight established as early as June 1st.

12. Growth Allowance- South Carolina will still use a 2 pound growth allowance. Wrestlers will be given a 2 pound growth allowance to their minimum weight classes on January 1st. However, the 2 pound growth allowance cannot help a wrestler establish a minimum weight class.

a. EXAMPLE- A wrestler’s minimum weight on the OPC is 126.3. This athlete cannot wrestle 125 on January 7th after the two pounds have been given and the weight class becomes 127.

13. Number of weigh-ins at Minimum Weight- South Carolina no longer has a rule on making a certain number of weigh-ins to be eligible to compete at a weight class. The body fat testing and hydration will be used to establish the minimum weight.

14. Establishing Minimum Weight Class- All wrestlers (4-A, 3-A, 2-A) must be at their minimum weight class by January 29th, 2010. A wrestler does not have to actually make weight at an event or official weigh-in to be certified for that lowest weight class. The OPC must simply allow the wrestler to make that minimum weight by final date.

15. Moving up in Weight Classes- A wrestler may weigh in one weight class above their minimum weight class AT THAT TIME (added November 2006) without losing certification at the lower weight class.

a. EXAMPLE- Wrestler is certified to wrestle 130. The wrestler may weight in at 135 and bump up to 140 in a dual meet without losing certification at lowest weight class (130)

b. EXAMPLE 2- Wrestler is certified to wrestle 130. The wrestler weighs in for a dual meet at 140. Since this is two weight classes above the minimum weight class established by the wrestler, they have now re-certified their lowest weight class to 135. This athlete is no longer eligible to compete at 130.

c. EXAMPLE 3- Wrestler weighs 140 when he does testing in late November and body fat allows him to wrestle 130 at his lowest. The team has a match first week in December, but at that point the lowest the wrestler can go is 136.3 (because he can only lose 1.5% each week). He can wrestle 140 and not lose his certification to go down to 130 because AT THAT TIME the weight class 140 was the lowest he could go and compete.
16. Coaches Responsibility- It is the responsibility of the coaches to follow all the procedures and make sure they wrestle their athletes in the appropriate weight classes at the appropriate times. Wrestling an athlete at an improper weight class will be seen as using an ineligible player and will subject to the penalties and fines that the SCHSL uses for all sports.

well why is this information not posted anywhere?

I don't know anything about the weight rules for wrestling, but what I have read on this website leads me to believe that the purpose of the rules is to protect the health of the wrestlers. If that is the case, then:

1- A violation should result in a disciplinary hearing for the coach to determine if he has acted in a way to potentially harm the health of the athletes.
2- If a wrestler weighs in at the appropriate weight for the match in which he is competing, this rule should not determine the outcome of the match. Is there anything in the rule book that specifies that the match will be forfeighted for a violation of the weight change rules?

All of the coaches I have known were honorable men who made great sacrifices for little compensation for the sake of their sport and the althletes they coached. Let's not impugn the reputations of any of them without compelling evidence. There can be an honest misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the rules. All of the coaches I knew taught that winning without honor is not winning at all.

Best wishes to all of you, both coaches and athletes.