Format for European Surfing Championships
The European Championships will be run in Double Elimination format which consists of rounds of heats in each division with not less than 50% of the competitors in each heat advancing to the next round (winners round (P) or losers round ( R)).
When a surfer loses in the winners round (P) he passes to the losers round (R). Once he has lost in the loser’s round he is eliminated from the competition. All of the winners from both rounds will continue until they compete together in the final.
If for any reason the original schedule is not possible to complete, the Technical Director can use the following options:
a) If conditions make it impossible to follow the original schedule, even if the heat times are reduced to the minimum, the losers round will be cut short and the winners of the losers round will join the winners round early. After that, when any competitor loses he is eliminated from the competition.
b) The priority list for repercharge dropping is the following:
Eurosurf:
1. 1st repercharge round for all divisions
2. All repercharges for Masters, Seniors, Longboard and Womens Bodyboard divisions
3. All repercharges Mens Bodyboard and Women Surf divisions
4. All repercharges for Open Surf
If there is still a need to eliminate divisions, the priority list remains the same as above.
c) If it is impossible to continue with the competition, the points still to be decided will be divided among the competitors who are still in the competition. 5% of the points are deducted from the competitors in the losing rounds (R) and added together and divided amongst the remaining competitors in the progression rounds (P).
Rules:
Competition Rules
1. The Head Judge will indicate when a heat is to commence.
Heats will commence with one blast on an air horn or siren and finish with 2 blasts.
In addition, a large disc (minimum 1mt diameter) will be used – Dark Green to signal the start of the heat; Light fluro Yellow to indicate 5 minutes left in the heat and no colour to indicate the end of the heat (it’s also possible to use lights with same colours ). The disc must be displayed against a neutral background.
2. Heats will either start at the waters edge (competitors must not be in the water) or from the line-up (infractions will be penalised with an interference penalty).
3. Where water starts are permitted, competitors will be allowed to paddle out on the contest directors direction at a pre-arranged time (eg: 5 minutes before the start of their heat) and will congregate well away from the contest areas. Competitors will be penalised if they interfere with a heat in progress while paddling out for a subsequent heat. The penalty will be an interference penalty. The surfer interfered with shall be allowed an additional wave and shall be informed of this via the PA.
4. If possible the commentator will give a five second countdown at the end of each heat.
5. 2 timing devices must be used.
6. The heat will end at the beginning of the first of the final sirens sounds. This must be at the end of the allotted time. There will be at least a 30 second gap between heats.
Heat Times and Wave Counts
1. Heats shall be of 15 – 25 minutes duration. Surfers best 2, 3 or 4 waves shall count. Each surfer may ride a maximum of ten waves. A surfer should be informed via the PA that he has ridden 9 and 10 waves.
2. Finals shall be of 20 – 45 minutes duration. A surfers best 2, 3 or 4 waves shall be count. Each surfer may ride a maximum of 15 waves. Each surfer shall be informed (via the PA) when they have ridden 14 and 15 waves.
3. The Contest Director, Head Judge and Technical Director shall between them decide on heat times, number of waves to count and whether to have beach or water starts.
4. Any surfer who stands up after his heat has finished and is still riding when the next heat is in progress will be penalised and the wave will not be scored. The penalty will be an interference penalty (this penalty is also for up before heat start).
5. For a wave to score the surfer must be clearly in possession of the wave, on the wave face and his hands must have left the rails (rail grabs excluded). Bodyboarders must have dropped down the face of the wave or completed a manoeuvre for it to score.
6. There will be no time extensions to a heat in progress. If for any reason a heat has to be stopped it will be resumed at the time it was stopped and will run for the originally set period. An exception to this is if the contest committee feel the heat should be re-run because conditions have altered radically or for some other reason.
7. The Contest Director will decide the order in which events are to be run and display it prominently on a notice board.
8. When heats are in progress, any unauthorised surfer in the competitor’s area will be penalised. The penalty could be the immediate disqualification of the surfer.
9. Judging statistics will be compiled daily (by the Head Judge) and any inconsistent judges will be dropped from the panel and may be expected to undertake other duties (eg: spotter). The Contest Director, Head Judge and Technical Director shall decide together if a judge is to be dropped.
10. Judges score sheets shall be available for scrutiny by competitors in the presence of their Team Manager or Coach.
11. Any Team member who is found guilty of unsportsmanlike conduct may be liable to disqualification and losing the points for their team at the direction of the ESF Executive committee.
12. Heats will be made up of a maximum of 4 surfers. A minimum of 50% of the surfers in each heat will advance.
Bodyboard
Bodyboards will have the following attributes:
- They will be flexible, and shall include some portion of soft exterior skin.
- They shall not exceed 5 feet in length.
- The use of fins is optional.
Longboards
Board requirements:
- Length is minimum 9 feet, measured in straight line (not over the rocker).
- Width dimensions to be a minimum of 47 inches. That is the total of the widest point, plus the width 12 inches up from the tail and the width 12 inches back from the nose.
- Traditional longboard Malibu shape to be used with use of multiple fins and channels allowed.
- Judging criteria – “Longboards will be judged on a combination of traditional and modern manoeuvres with control being the major factor”
General Rules
1. There has to be a minimum of 18 inches (45cm) of wave height before surf can be deemed contestable.
2. Maximum of two photographers in the line-up during a heat with no more than one to be using a still camera and the other the event video. The photographers must have a minimum size lens of 135mm, cannot use hard boards for flotation and be ESF approved.
After checking-in with the event director and signing a waiver (if required), they can enter the water only during assigned heats and after obtaining an ESF supplied helmet (if available), to wear in the water.
The Contest Director and Head Judge can remove the photographer(s) from the water if they deem it necessary.
Protests
1. Any competitor has the right to protest on a result of a heat. All protests must be in writing and be submitted on behalf of the surfer by his Manager or Coach, to the Contest Director no more than 30 minutes after the end of the heat. The merits of each protest will be considered by the Contest Director, the Head Judge and by the Technical Director, where after the Contest Director will rule on the protest.
2. In case of interference call, the Contest Director at the end of the heat will notify the Team Manager or the Coach of the offending surfer of the interference call. Any protest that is lodged in respect of the interference must be submitted in writing within ten minutes of the notification being given.
3. The Contest Director will convey the result of the appeal to the Team Manager, and his decision will be final. If a Team Manager is unhappy or dissatisfied with the result of a written protest, they shall have the right of appeal to the ESF Executive Committee. Such an appeal must be in writing and must be submitted to the ESF Executive Committee meeting.
4. Any country has the right to approach the Executive Committee of the ESF if that country is unhappy with the way in which a protest was dealt with at a European Championships.
Wave Maximums
1. Any a surfer who remains in the water after their 10th / 15th wave will be penalised for interference if he catches another wave.
He will receive another interference if:
a) He rides any extra waves that obviously deprive another competitor of an available ride.
b) He interferes with any other competitor by paddling, positioning or some other reason.
Wave Tabulation
With or without the computer system the tabulation is made wave by wave.
The highest and lowest score of each wave will not count.
The average score is calculated from the three remaining score.
The final positions will be defined by the sum of the 2, 3, 4 or 5 best waves of each surfer
How the surfers will be judged
Criteria to be used in Judging
- a surfer must perform radical manoeuvres in the most critical sections of a wave with speed, power and flow to maximise scoring potential.
- innovative and progressive surfing as well as variety of repertoire (manoeuvres) will be taken into consideration when rewarding points for waves ridden.
- the surfer who executes these criteria with the maximum degree of difficulty and commitment on the waves shall be rewarded with the highest scores.
Longboard criteria: A surfer must perform Radical Controlled Manoeuvres in the Critical Sections of a wave with Speed, Power and Flow to Maximise Scoring Potential. Traditional Surfing as well as a Variety of Modern Manoeuvres will be taken into account when rewarding points for waves ridden. The surfer who executes this criteria with the Maximum Degree of Difficulty and Commitment on the wave shall be rewarded with the higher scores
Bodyboard criteria: This shall be based on the criteria above with regard to the manner of bodyboarding (prone, drop-knee or standing).
Surfing Criteria Breakdown
The Criteria has purposely been broken into 3 sentences.
The first sentence having the most emphasis and is by far the most important part of the criteria. It concerns the manoeuvres, how radical and committed they are and the section of the wave that they are performed on. It is vital that every member of a judging panel adheres to the same point of reference so that each competitor knows how to maximise his/her scoring potential.
1. A surfer must perform radical manoeuvres in the critical sections of a wave with speed, power and flow to maximise scoring potential. This is by far the most important part of the criteria
We can dissect this part of the criteria further by looking at the key words and explaining exactly what each means. They are:
- Radical Manoeuvres
- Critical Section
- Speed, Power & Flow
Radical Manoeuvres – Modern day manoeuvres basically constitute a change of direction of the board on the wave (not the surfer on the board). Such manoeuvres include tube rides, re-entries, hacks, snaps, floaters, aerials and cutbacks etc. With how much commitment they are carried out radical they are, how much the surfer pushes the board to the limit will determine how high that they will score, as long as other sections of the criteria are also met.
To score, a manoeuvre must be completed. If a surfer has completed 99% of the manoeuvre then loses control and falls off or is not able to continue riding the wave, then that manoeuvre will not be scored. (The wave score will consist of a combination of all the completed turns before the fall.)
Critical sections – This part of the criteria describes the area of the wave with potential to yield the highs score. The critical section of the wave is the steepest part of the wave next to the curl, also known as .the pocket.. The degree of commitment and risk involved in performing close to the curl is the reason why more points are awarded. Generally in beach break conditions the most important critical section is the first section ¡®out the back. and a big turn performed here is difficult and risky. Certain types of wave (and even beach breaks), have critical sections at an inside bowl such as
Sunset Beach, Bells and St. Leu on Reunion.
Speed, Power and Flow – Generally speaking speed and power become more evident when a manoeuvre is carried out in the critical section and all three are intrinsically linked. The word style has been excluded from the new criteria as it has become apparent that many surfers were misinterpreting it. The judges. definition of style was defined as how the surfer reads the wave, utilises sections and links his moves in a seamless flow power and speed. On the recommendation of Kelly Slater it was thought the word flow better defines this concept.
2. Innovative and progressive surfing as well as a variety of repertoire (manoeuvres) will be taken into consideration when rewarding points for waves ridden.
This part of the criteria allows the surfers to be more expressive with dynamic and futuristic manoeuvres that are constantly being created by the elite surfers of our sport.
Innovative and Progressive – This sentence in the criteria reminds the judge to be open minded about new directions and developments in surfing. Progressive surfing is often called .new school. and used to consist of tailslides, aerials and reverses before they became mainstream. The most important thing to remember with a new manoeuvre is that if it encompasses all sections of the criteria i.e. it is committed, has speed and power, and is performed in the critical section of the wave, then it must be high scoring.
Variety of Repertoire – Another new part of the criteria, to differentiate between safe surfing and get the surfers to use the full variety of manoeuvres in their repertoire. A surfer can satify all the other aspects of the criteria but produce the same reliable turn monotonously along a wave, the new criteria means that three different big turns will get the bigger scores than three similar big turns.
3. The surfer who executes these criteria with the maximum degree of difficulty and commitment on the waves shall be rewarded with the highest scores.
The best judges are good surfers who can understand the degree of difficulty of a manoeuvre, obviously the more difficult the manoeuvre the more points (or parts of a point) should be rewarded. Likewise a surfer who commits everything to each turn is risking everything by not completing the turn, (these surfers are pushing themselves to the limit but also the sport), therefore surfers who commit themselves to high risk manoeuvres in the critical sections, with control, should be rewarded.
Remember: Degree of difficulty and risk taken = Reward
NOTE Wave size and length of ride
Wave size and length of ride are not apart of the judging criteria. Wave selection is the single most important factor for a surfer in his heat. By getting the best waves he/she has more potential to perform the best turns, this also denies that wave to his opponents. In small to medium size surf there is no emphasis put on wave size as the biggest wave are not necessarily the best. It is the judge’s job to score the surfer and the manoeuvres that he completes and not to score the wave size. The surfer must comply with the first part of the criteria to full capitalise on catching the best waves. (The exception is if the contest is held in ‘big wave’ conditions. The most important part of the criteria would be size, as a surfer prepared to catch the biggest waves shows the greatest commitment.) A surfer must be manoeuvring in the critical section to score points; therefore length of ride is unimportant unless the criteria is being adhered to.
NOTE The word style has not been written into the criteria. It is not the judge’s responsibility to judge whether he likes an individual surfer’s style or not. The word style selects back to the word control. If a surfer executes radical manoeuvres with control then his style works. It is vital for every member of the judging panel to adhere to the same point of reference (criteria) so that each competitor knows how to maximise his point scoring potential.
3. Judging
The zero to ten point scoring system used by the ESF it is broken up into the following categories:
0.0 – 2 Bad
2.1 – 4 Poor
4.1 – 6 Good
6.1 – 8 Very Good
8.1 – 10 Excellent
If a judge misses a wave or part of a wave, he should place an “M” in the square of the manual judges sheet and inform the Head Judge immediately, to have the wave included into his sheet, by the ESF Head Judge or Technical Director.
Judges may not change their score or interference scores. In the event that a mistake has been made, the Judge should have the Head Judge make the correction for him. During the heat, call wave counts as frequently as possible while the contestants are NOT riding. Repeat wave counts.
Judges should avoid being influenced by the spectators, commentators or friendships and other outside influences. Have the confidence to stand by their own decisions.
Judging Heavy Heats
Difficult heats should be accepted by a judge as a challenge. This means judging methodically, being extremely critical, watching details, picturing the whole wave in your mind. In every contest there will always be some heats that are more difficult than others either because they are the first heats of the day, or due to worsening conditions or because it is a close heat due to the level of surfing that is taking place, good or bad. This is when the top judges come to the forefront.
The following factors should be considered when analysing each wave in such heats..
. Where was the first manoeuvre executed?
. How well was it executed?
. How well were the manoeuvres connected together?
. Did the surfer execute rail-to-rail turns through the flat sections or did he just hop all the way through to the next section?
. Compare the outside manoeuvres to the inside manoeuvres.
. Compare take-off areas and how deep the surfer was at the initial point of take-off.
. Consider how the surfer utilised the wave.
. The ability of the surfer to make sections and whether the manoeuvres were functional in doing so.
. Did the surfer actually complete the manoeuvre and with control?
. What did the surfer complete before falling?
. Comparison between first scoring wave and last scoring wave is extremely important. Inexperienced judges tend to overscore last waves as they forget or totally ignore what has taken place during a heat. This often affects a result. It is an area where you can learn a lot from an experienced judge. They have the ability to concentrate on the broad picture of what is happening in the heats as well as minor details such as a paddling interference.
