California Track & Running News Apr-June 2013, VOLUME 39 NUMBER 2 | Page 20

CTRN-APR-JUNE_2013--1_Layout 1 4/24/13 8:18 AM Page 20 hot topic: Mark Winitz [email protected] USATF Officials 20 ct&rn • April–June 2013 How to Become a USATF Official USATF welcomes your questions and comments about officiating and, of course, all inquiries about how to join its officiating ranks. Contact your local USATF association’s Officials Certification chair. Find the list at www.usatf.org/groups/ officials/certification/ It rained the night before the 2011 USA Track & Field Western Regional and Pacific Association/USATF Cross Country Championships, leaving the trails and meadows on the Golden Gate Park course slick and muddy. During the first race of the morning, a challenge developed. A particularly slick portion of downhill trail had turned into a quagmire. Several women, in separate instances, slipped and toppled into the mud. Fortunately, none were injured. By the end of the race, the well-trodden mud hole had only gotten worse. Two races remained. What could be done? Several USATF officials serving at the event recognized the safety hazard. They convened with the meet director and recommended a slight course change for the remaining races, moving a section of the course from the slippery bog to the adjacent grassy meadow. The suggestion was gratefully approved and meet officials quickly moved the flag markers on the course for the races that followed. USATF officials are taught from Day 1 that, above all, the safety of all competitors is a priority. Two lead men round the final turn at the 2009 PA/USATF 12K Championships in San Francisco. A 20meter gap separates them as they head for the finish line with a short block remaining. Suddenly, about 10 meters before the finish line, a lead motorcycle unintentionally cuts directly in front of the leader, forcing him to quickly veer in a wide arc to his left to avoid a collision. In that instant, his rival speeds past him and crosses the finish first, in front of the would-be champion. Who adjudicates the dilemma over who’s crowned the men’s 12K champion? USATF officials, of course. All USATF officials serve as volunteers after being certified by USATF. Certification requires taking and passing a mandatory open-book exam, or rules review, that tests one’s knowledge of USATF rules. (PA/USATF also requires its officials to attend a certification clinic.) Officials are classified by specialty area (track events, field events, LDR/offtrack events, etc.) and experience level. There are four experience levels: Apprentice, Association, National, and Master. All officials (with the exception of “newbie” Apprentices) must re-certify every four years. Every official has an opportunity to work at events at both the local and national levels, including U.S. championships. “We’re not policemen,” said USATF National Officials Committee chair Len Krsak, who has officiated for about 22 years in his home state of Ohio, nationally, and internationally. “We’re there as officials to make the competition just and fair and equitable so nobody has an advantage or disadvantage. And we’re generic and neutral. We really don’t care who wins or loses.” It takes about 60 officials to oversee an average track meet, and approximately 120 for major meets such as the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials. The requirements for LDR events vary. Typically, a minimum of 6–8 officials are needed to oversee a moderately sized road running or cross country event at the association level. USATF regional and national championships, of course, require more officiating support. According to Krsak, th