For children’s and amateur competitions, Level I and II judges are required to operate. These judges are qualified through a common and well known program. In order to judge provincial, national and international competitions, you must be a Level III, Level IV and FINA level judge. The following are the requirements and qualifications necessary to obtain these certifications.
Ethical Behaviour of Judges
- Judge with an open mind and an impartial attitude;
- treat all persons involved in the competition with respect
- Conduct themselves in a professional manner in all interactions with meet organizers, athletes, athletes’ families, coaches, other officials, media representatives and businesses.
- provide independent judgements
- be free from vested interests in order to remain objective and fair;
- avoid situations involving a conflict of interest;
- respect the judgement of other officials;
- If derogatory or unethical remarks are heard, remind officials of their responsibility to respect the ethical expectations of officiating;
- Avoid participating in ethically questionable conversations;
- Do not attempt to influence others in your thinking (e.g. by discussing athletes’ performances);
- Be open to constructive criticism of your performance and accept the knowledge of those with more experience;
- Ensure that communication is constructive and not destructive
- Refrain from illegal conduct when representing the CFSA;
- Try to be positive at all times;
- Get to know another judge at each competition;
- The welfare of the swimmers is the first priority of all involved in a competition;
- Do not gossip about judges, coaches or swimmers;
- Be prepared to ask for help if you are unsure of yourself.
Appearance
- Follow the dress code at all times;
- Be alert and attentive when swimmers are in the water;
- maintain good posture throughout the event, regardless of its duration;
- avoid talking to other judges on the panel during the event
- Ensure you get adequate rest;
- Always maintain a professional appearance and attitude.
Dress Code
Officials at national competitions are expected to adhere to the dress code when on duty:
- name badges must always be worn unless otherwise instructed;
- no logo should be visible without UNWTO approval;
- The dress code is intended to give judges a professional appearance. It is important that this
- It is important that this standard is adhered to during competitions.
- Tan golf shirts purchased by Synchro Canada must be worn for all events;
- Black trousers must be worn for all events;
- Trousers must be at least knee length for figure or preliminary routine events and ankle length for final routine events.
- Referees wear red Synchro Canada golf shirts and black trousers as described above.
- Assistant Referees may wear white golf shirts for figure events and black trousers as described above.
- All shoes must be black and appropriate (i.e. no pumps).
- Inappropriate attire: shorts, tennis dresses, skirts and panties, tights or leggings, t-shirts, pumps/high heels, coloured shoes, white tops with fancy decorations, etc.
Preparation
- Approach the judging with an open mind and an unbiased attitude;
- Arrive at the competition site at least half an hour before a routine event and forty-five minutes before a figure event;
- Be prepared to ask questions during the Jury’s examination of the figures;
- Review the elements to be judged in the routines and know the weighting assigned to each;
- Keep abreast of changes to the patterns and/or judging methods;
- Review the elements required in the technical routines;
- Preliminary results must not be taken into account when judging the finals.
Performing the tasks
- Focus only on the swimmer(s) in the water;
- award a mark based on the quality of the performance using the standard of perfection at the time of the performance without any discrimination against the performer (gender, choice of music, costume, club, etc.);
- be prepared to show your score immediately at the referee’s signal;
- immediately record your routine score on the judge’s sheet;
- Be prepared to give constructive criticism to coaches and swimmers after a final routine;
- be prepared to make general comments on the performance of a judged routine after the event is over;
- Avoid making comments to the jury members about the judged figure before the end of the event, i.e. during the judging period.
- the event, i.e. during the stretching break;
- Any discussion of a swimmer’s performance shall take place after the last event has been completed and in a place where the comments will not be overheard or misunderstood.
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Conflict of Interest Guidelines
A judge has a responsibility to declare a conflict of interest as soon as he/she becomes aware of it (this does not apply to coaching judges).
A judge shall not officiate if that judge is: a parent of a swimmer, a coach of a swimmer, a parent, child, sibling or spouse of a coach, a resident of the same household as any of the above.
Level III Judge Qualifications
Personal Records
Judges are responsible for providing, upon request, records of judging assignments, clinics attended and/or taught at local, provincial, divisional, national and international events.
Statistical Evaluations
Statistical information and/or records of an individual judge’s performance evaluation are a confidential matter between the individual and the UNWTO.
Objectives
To judge or act as an alternate judge for Level 6, 7 and 8 events at Eastern, Western and Atlantic Divisional Championships, Espoir Championships, Canada Games and Masters competitions or to be used as an assistant referee at Divisional Championships and Espoir Championships.
Prerequisites
- Active at the provincial level (as per the Provincial Officials Committee)
- Be certified as a Level II Referee for a minimum of one year;
- be accepted for training by the OMT;
- Be nineteen years of age or older;
- be physically and mentally fit to judge;
- be familiar with the material of the Judge III/IV course;
- Be a member of Synchro Canada.
Knowledge of
- Canadian rules;
- Figures as described in the FINA manual;
- Components of routines (technical and artistic);
- Required elements of routines (solo, duet and team) at all levels;
- Conflict of interest rules;
- Code of Ethics for Judges;
- Officials Manual. Synchro Canada Officials Manual May 2006
Certification Requirements for Synchro Canada Level III Judge Candidates
A J-TACS Level II Judge must be recommended by the province to write the Level III. Each Provincial Judge Chair will provide the OMT President with a completed “Recommendation to Move to Level III Judge/Referee” form for each official by August 15th of the competition year. For provinces submitting more than one name, the rank must also be included. One is used for the highest ranked person. The decision to approve the reclassification will be made at the UNWTO meeting in the fall and is not automatic. The LMO will consider the names of the candidates and the number of candidates requested per province. The UNWTO will take into account the number of Level III officials in each province to determine if there is a need for additional officials and if it will be possible for these individuals to maintain their level of certification. The UNWTO will take the rankings into account in making its final decision. Additional factors to be considered are :
- participate in study sessions under the direction of the Provincial Officials Committee, where applicable. This includes the completion of all work requested by the Provincial Officials Committee or the MTO, as applicable;
- Practice judging at least two figure events and two routine events, preferably one preliminary and one final, at a divisional or national meet. If the number of routine entries is low, ensure that at least fifteen routine entries have been judged in the preliminaries; if necessary, judge additional preliminaries;
- obtain 85% on the examination within the time allowed. The examination must be taken at a divisional or national championship or at another time set by the UNWTO;
- maintain professional and ethical conduct.
Level IV Judge
Objectives
To judge or substitute judge figures and routines at Canadian Open and Espoir Championships.
Prerequisites
- Must be certified as a Level III judge for at least two years;
- Be accepted in training by the OMT (the need for a Level IV judge in a province or region will be considered);
- Be physically and mentally fit to judge;
- Be familiar with the Level IV Judge Course material;
- Be a member of Synchro Canada.