Track and Field Director’s Report
By Traci Neely, Assistant Athletic Director | Thursday, February 27, 2014 1:30 PM
WELCOME
The UIL track and field season is here! I hope all of you had a restful off-season and that your participants are ready to begin another high performance year in Texas for track and field. This is the first of many communications throughout your season. Please feel free to contact me if you have further questions or need discussion, please contact the UIL office.
Reminders
Each coach must complete the Rules Compliance Program every year. You can access the online UIL required course here:
http://www.uiltexas.org/athletics/rules-compliance-program
The link to the full track and field manual is:
https://www.uiltexas.org/files/athletics/manuals/TF_Manual_13-14.pdf
Meet Allowances
This is a reminder about the changes that are effective for this new season. The policy has remained the same with one exception: the loss of one invitational meet for the regular season for a total of seven invitational meets for each participant. No student representing a participant school shall participate in more than seven invitational meets during the school year, excluding one district, area, regional meet and the state meet. That means that each participant has seven meets in which they can run. I understand that many times you do not take the entire team to every contest or some athletes compete at a different meet than others. The benefit that many of you have realized comes with the unlimited number of dual and triangular meets that are allowed during the season, provided that there is no loss of school time for those meets.
School week: A student or team representing a member school shall participate in no more than one scrimmage, contest or meet per school week. School week is defined as beginning at 12:01 am on the first instructional day of a calendar week and ends at the close of instruction on the last instructional day of the calendar week, excluding holidays. Meets, which are limited to three or fewer schools, do not count as a meet for teams or participants, provided there is no loss of school time.
Only eligible students are allowed to compete at UIL member school hosted meets, however if you have a participant that is not eligible due to a residency issue, a JV heat is permissible.
Indoor or non-school meets: According to UIL rules, student athletes are allowed to participate in non-school activities at any time during the school year and summer. Local school districts are allowed to have policies that are more restrictive than UIL rules, if they so choose. Check with your local school district for their policy. As the policy pertains to indoor track meets during the school year, schools must consider all of the following:
Constitution and Contest Rules section 1209 - UIL Guidelines for Off Season and Non School Participation:
VII. NON SCHOOL PARTICIPATION - INDIVIDUAL SPORTS: CROSS-COUNTRY, GOLF, SWIMMING, TENNIS, TRACK AND FIELD AND WRESTLING
During the school year, coaches of individual sports are allowed to work with student athletes from their attendance zone in non-school practice during the school year with limitations. Coaches should be aware that any time spent working with a student athlete from their attendance zone in grades 7-12, whether in school or non school practice, will count as part of the eight hours of practice allowed outside of the school day during the school week under state law.
School coaches that attend, instruct, transport and/or supervise students from their school attendance zone to an indoor or non-school track meet must count that meet towards the maximum seven allowable meets for that specific individual student that competes. Students that enter with the school name will also be required to count the non-school meet towards the allowable limit.
For clarification purposes, students that participate in a non-school/indoor track meet and do not enter using the school name, utilize school equipment, transportation, instruction or funds would be allowed and it would not count against the allowable meet limit for the school.
According to section 1209 (f) (2) of the UIL Constitution and Contest Rules:(f) OFF-SEASON PARTICIPATION IN NON-SCHOOL TEAM SPORTS.
(2) School equipment shall not be used for non-school teams/leagues.
*As indicated above, schools are prohibited from allowing school equipment to be utilized for non school activities.
It would not be a violation for student athletes to raise funds for non-school participation. No school funds (including booster club funds), equipment or transportation could be involved in non-school activities. The non school fundraiser could not be related to the school and the student athletes must do it all on their own or with the assistance of their parents.
NFHS rulebooks may be purchased from the NFHS Website: www.nfhs.org
**NFHS 2014 SEASON RULE CHANGES **
Rule 3.2.8 ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION DEVICES ARE ALLOWED
Technology advancements in the area of electronic audio and video devices have made such items easy to use and very accessible. Their use, if not used for communication during the actual competition when a competitor is on the track or completing a trial, no longer creates an advantage or disadvantage among competitors and it can serve as a coaching tool.
• Electronic devices can be used in unrestricted areas and coaching boxes, providing the location does not interfere with the progress of the meet as determined by the meet referee.
• Electronic devices may not be used for any review of an official’s decision.
ADDITIONAL NFHS RULE CHANGES:
http://www.nfhs.org/Workarea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=9468
POLE VAULT PADDING NEW BOX COLLAR REQUIREMENT COMING IN SPRING 2015
Under the Rule 7.5.24 it will be a requirement in high school track and field beginning next spring. Pole vault planting box padding that meets ASTM specifications standards were allowed this past season and will be permitted in spring 2014, but will be REQUIRED in 2015. The padding can be incorporated into the design of the planting box or can be an addition to an existing planting box.
OTHER RESOURCES ON THE UIL WEBSITE
NFHS Adoptions – Specific to UIL meets:
/files/athletics/NFHS_Rules_Adoptions.pdf
Uniform description: /files/athletics/Uniform_2013.pdf
A list of useful forms to utilize for your invitational and/or district or area meets is located:
http://www.uiltexas.org/track-field/forms
CHAMPIONSHIP MEET DEADLINES
DISTRICT - April 12, 2014.
AREA - APRIL 19, 2014
UIL Championship Meet Structure:
The local districts and designated district match-ups have discretion over the qualifying format each year. The District Executive Committee (DEC) determines district meet details. District meets can be skipped and the corresponding districts could elect to go straight to the Area meet.
Also, a new policy approved by the Legislative Council in June 2013 allows the two corresponding districts to determine by majority vote (all schools in both districts), whether or not they hold an area meet. Schools should contact their local DEC to see which qualifying format will be used for 2014. When an area meet is held, the area meet will be facilitated by the mutual agreement of the two designated districts.
If a district does not have one or the other (district or area meets), regional competitors must be determined by either one of two scenarios: 1) no area meet held-top two qualifiers from each district to region; or 2) no district meet held – top four qualifiers from the area meet advance to region.
State Meet news item: The wheelchair track events of the 100m, 400m and shot put will be contested for the first time in state meet history. More information about entry procedures and qualifying requirements will be sent to superintendents and school coaches in the coming weeks.
SUGGESTIVE OFFICIALS’ GUIDELINES
Track and Field Officiating: One of the most important aspects of hosting a successful track meet is early selection and appointment of meet officials and meet personnel.
• Schools participating may be asked to supply some responsible adults to serve as assistant officials.
• These individuals should not be placed in positions of judgment involving students from their own school.
Did you know?
• Track & Field is the oldest UIL sanctioned athletic activity. The first UIL Track & Field state meet was held at Clark Field on the University of Texas at Austin campus in 1911.
• Mike A. Myers Stadium has served as the site for the UIL Track & Field State Meet since 1999. Prior to that time, the state meet was held at Texas Memorial Stadium on the University of Texas at Austin campus.
• Conference, state and sometimes national records are broken at each state meet. The longest standing conference record was set in 1964 in the boys long jump. Charles Clifton (Rio Vista) still holds the Conference 1A Division I record of 24'6.5".
• The oldest state record was set in 1979 but Michael Carter (Dallas Jefferson). Carter still holds the state shot put record of 75' 9", he also still holds the national record for shot put with a 77' 0" throw from another contest in 1979.
• 2011 marked the first year a ninth qualifier was added in each conference for every boys and girls event at the State Meet.
Over the years, 20 UIL Track & Field individual state champions have gone on to win Olympic medals. Four former UIL State Champions have won two or more medals: Derrick Brew (Klein Forest), Carlette Guidry (Houston Sterling), Randel Matson (Pampa), and Jeremy Wariner (Arlington Lamar).