Terms used:
Chief Data Specialist
The data specialist who oversees the team of data specialists at a competition.
Club
A not-for-profit organization that is operating for the general purpose of providing Skate Canada skating programs and is managed by a volunteer board of directors.
Data Specialist
An individual sixteen years of age or older who has been trained and appointed to calculate the results of sanctioned figure skating competitions.
Event
The name given to a group of skaters entered in a category. There may be one event per category or several events per category depending on the number of total entries. Each event is independent of the other events within the category.
Events
The name given to a group of skaters entered in a category. There may be one event per category or several events per category depending on the number of total entries. Each event is independent of the other events within the category.
Fall
Defined as a loss of control by a skater with the result that the majority of the skater's body weight is on the ice being supported by any other part of the body other than the blades. e.g. hand(s), knee(s), back, buttock(s) or any part of the arm.
Member
Each person that meets the requirements of any of the three Member classes as defined in Article 3 hereof [of the bylaws] and that has been duly admitted as a member of Skate Canada.
Members
Each person that meets the requirements of any of the three Member classes as defined in Article 3 hereof [of the bylaws] and that has been duly admitted as a member of Skate Canada.
President
The president of Skate Canada. The President is the chair of the Board.
Qualifying Events
A qualifying event is any competition or any event that qualifies skaters to the sectional championships and higher. These include, without limitation, Sectional Championships, Skate Canada Challenge, Synchronized Regional Championships, Canadian Figure Skating Championships and Canada Cup.
Referee
A referee of an event within a competition is an experienced judge who has received further training to conduct an event and monitor the performance of the panel of judges. Referees are qualified to referee or judge at or below a specified level of competition in one or more of singles, pairs, ice dance or synchronized skating.
Section
An organization incorporated or organized in a particular province or territory (and in some cases, a combination thereof) strategically aligned with Skate Canada, that may receive funds from provincial or territorial Governmental Authorities and be subject to applicable sport recognition programs and transfer payment arrangements. Each Section is held to the governance and operating requirements of their respective province and / or territory(ies) and is responsible for skating in their respective jurisdictions.
Section Chair
The chair of any Section.
Technical Controller
An individual sixteen years of age or older who is responsible for accurate technical panel process and authorizes, corrects, deletes and adds elements to the list of elements performed during an event. Technical controllers are qualified to act on panels at or below a specified level of competition in one or more of singles, pairs, ice dance or synchronized skating.
Such protests must be addressed to the referee of the event. The protest shall be filed in writing with the technical representative/chief referee of the competition. At Skate Canada qualifying events and national championships, the technical representative shall immediately provide the Skate Canada representative and the referee of the event a copy of the protest. If neither a technical representative nor a chief referee is appointed, protests must be lodged with the referee of the event.
The competitor(s) in question (or in the case of an underage competitor, his or her parent or legal guardian), the coach of the competitor or the team leader for the competitor (with the consent of the competitor(s) and/or coach of the competitor(s), club for the competitor(s) (with the consent of the competitor(s) and/ or coach of the competitor(s)), Skate Canada (with the consent of the competitor(s) and/or coach of the competitor(s)), or any official of the competition may file the protest.
All protests concerning the determination of the results of a competition will be considered by a protest committee which will be composed of the following individuals: the referee of the event, the technical controller of the event and the chief data specialist. Other experts may provide assistance to the process where necessary. The originator of the protest may not be a member of the protest committee. In the case that the originator of the protest is the referee or technical controller for the event, the organizing committee head (e.g. club president, section chair, Skate Canada President) shall assign a replacement such that the protest committee will always be comprised of at least three officials. The technical representative/chief referee shall convene the protest committee at a time appropriate for all members. All members of the committee will be provided with a copy of the original protest.
Where official video replay has been used at the competition, the committee may review this video footage. Unofficial video footage may not be used in the deliberation of the committee
Where an official audio recording of the technical panel has been made the committee may review this recording
Field of play decisions may not be over-turned by the protest committee. All protests concerning field of play decisions will be declined. In cases of protests concerning field of play decisions, the procedures for review of official’s performance shall apply
Should the protest committee determine that there has been an error in the application of the well-balanced program regulations, the error must be corrected, with a recalculation of the result
Should the protest committee determine that there has been an error in the value assigned to the identified element the error must be corrected, with a recalculation of the result
Should the protest committee determine that there has been an error in the application of the principles of calculation the error must be corrected, with recalculation of the result
Should the protest committee determine that after being correctly instructed by the technical controller, there was an error in the input of any element(s), fall(s), bonus(es), illegal element(s), additional element deduction(s) or any other deduction(s) by the data input operator, the error must be corrected, with recalculation of the result
Protests of the calculation of the results on any other grounds must be considered in good faith by the protest committee:
- In the case where a recalculation of the result must take place, it shall be conducted under the supervision of the chief data specialist, and shall be approved, by signature, by the referee, the technical controller and the chief data specialist
- The referee shall report the decision of the protest committee to the Skate Canada representative and the originator of the protest prior to public communication of the decision. This decision shall be considered the “decision of the referee”
- In the event that the decision of the committee results in a recalculation of the result, the referee shall make all reasonable effort to inform the sections, coaches and skaters who are affected by the recalculation of the result. A communication regarding the protest and decision shall be posted with the revised result. Only the revised result will appear in the official protocol of the competition.
