Bylaws!

[Thom Cate]

Dear all,

Below the sig, the current NCIFL Bylaws.  

Thom

--

Thom Cate

Sacramento, CA

916.206.5079

____________________________________________

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA INTERCOLLEGIATE FENCING LEAGUE

CODE OF OPERATIONS

for the

2011-2012 Season.

As proposed at the Fall 2010 NCIFL meeting in Santa Cruz,

and as

Ratified at the Spring 2011 NCIFL meeting in Davis.

Thom Cate (UCD, USFCA), President

Jillian Chong (ex-UCB), Vice President

Angelea Weber (UCD), Secretary Pro-Tem

President’s Note: This Code includes all motions agreed on and passed by the Delegates to the Spring League Meeting, held at Davis in April 2011.

I

ARTICLE I - Name and Object

Section l. The League established by this code of operations shall be known as the Northern California Intercollegiate Fencing League, herein referred to as the League or NCIFL.

Section 2. The object of the League is to provide the collegiate fencer, except as noted in the Code of Operations, the opportunity to compete with others in an institutional, educational setting, under the direction of coaches whose primary concern is the welfare of individual fencers.

ARTICLE II - Membership

Section 1. Membership
Membership in the League shall be open to accredited two-year and four-year universities and colleges in the Northern California area. All memberships must be approved by a majority of the members. Membership shall continue subject to the approval of the Governing Council.

Section 1a. Membership will be divided into two categories: Governing Member and Associate Member. Schools wishing to be considered Governing Members must host a tournament at their site every two years or less.

Section 1b. Those institutions and participating clubs shall be known as the “Members” of the League.

Section 2. Member Club Eligibility
There are no eligibility requirements for members of varsity fencing teams.

Section 3. Student-Fencer Eligibility
Student-fencers must be enrolled in at least one credit class at any post-secondary institution and will to show a current student ID in order to participate in any League events.

Section 4. New Member Clubs
Any post-secondary academic institution wishing to apply for membership must attend either the Fall or Spring League meetings and put their case to the Governing Council; these need not be solely from the Great State of California.

Section 5. Member Dues
There are no dues for member colleges in the League; the League will have no common bank account or funding, save what Members provide.

Section 6. Code of Conduct and Ethics
Member schools of the League agree to abide by the Code of Ethics as established by the NCAA, the United States Fencing Coaches Association, and the United States Fencing Association. Members and/or individual fencers believed to be in violation of these codes may, with a majority vote of the Governing Council, be sanctioned and/or expelled from the League.

Section 7. Relinquishment
Should a school wish to relinquish membership, the President, Vice-President and Secretary must be informed in writing, prior to the Spring League meeting.

Section 7a. Such notice will be given at least seven (7 days) before the Spring League meeting.

ARTICLE III - The Governing Council

Section 1. Voting Delegates

Two authorized representatives of each Governing Member institution, of which at least one shall be a student enrolled full-time at the represented institution, shall serve as voting delegates to the Governing Council.

Section 1a. An “authorized representative,” is one who has been officially given that assignment by the officers of the Member institution.

Section 1b. Each authorized member has one vote, and need not agree on how their individual votes are cast.

Section 2. League Officers
The officers of the Governing Council shall be a President, a Vice-President, and a Secretary; all officers are volunteers and serve without expectation of stipend, reimbursement or compensation in any manner.

Section 2a. The President shall be elected annually by a majority vote of the Governing Council members present at the Spring League meeting, when such vote is called for by League Members.

Section 2b. The President shall begin duties immediately following said vote

Section 2c. The President, with the approval of the Governing Council, shall appoint the Vice-President.

Section 2d. The Secretary shall be elected by a majority vote of the Governing Council and shall remain in office until resignation or replacement by a majority vote of the Governing Council.

ARTICLE IV - Duties of the Officers

Section l. President
The President shall preside at all meeting of the NCIFL and perform such duties as usually pertain to the office, including, but not limited to,
• Presiding at each Fall and Spring League meeting
• Determining Governing Body eligibility for clubs

• Primary arbiter of intra-League conflict between clubs, except as noted in IV-2 below.

Section 2. Vice-President
The Vice-President, when one has been appointed, shall, in the absence of the President, perform the duties of the President, including arbitration of conflicts as described below.
Section 3. Secretary
The Secretary shall:

• Keep minutes of all meetings,

• Track, keep and score points for the Club Championship Cup

ARTICLE V - Meetings

Section 1. Schedule
The Governing Council shall hold two regularly scheduled meetings per year:

Section 1a. The Fall Meeting shall be held at the first League meet, to establish and review the competition schedule, and conduct any business deemed necessary.

Section 1b. The Spring Meeting, held in April, if possible, and no later than May 15 unless there are special circumstances, to add or delete from the membership, to deal with any old and new business, to determine the schedule of the coming season, and to elect a new President, when such is called for.

Section 2. Notice
Notice of all meetings, including the agenda if possible, should be sent to all members at least two weeks prior to the meeting. Anyone wishing to add agenda items should notify the Secretary, in writing or by telephone, before the notice is sent. Members can also be notified of a meeting by telephone if time does not permit a written notice.

Section 3. Quorum
A simple majority of the members of the Governing Council present shall constitute a quorum.

ARTICLE VI - Dues and Assessments

Section l. Annual dues shall not be assessed. However, an annual due, assessment or deficit authorization may be granted by a two-thirds vote of the membership of the Governing Council present at the meeting, or by proxy.

Section 2. Regardless of Section 1, the fiscal year of the NCIFL shall be from August 1 to July 31.

ARTICLE VII - By-Laws and Rules

Section l. The Governing Council shall have the power to enact By-Laws for the improved governance of the League.

Section 2. By-Laws and rules shall be proposed, enacted, amended, or repealed by a simple majority vote of the quorum present at the meeting.

ARTICLE VIII - Amendments

Section 1. This Code of Operations may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Governing Council. The Secretary shall, when possible, notify members of the proposed changes in the meeting agenda.

CODE OF OPERATIONS BY-LAWS

DUES AND ASSESSMENTS:

1. Annual dues shall not be assessed by the League nor shall any annual or other membership fee be charged to Member Clubs.  Member clubs are free to charge their own membership or not, at the Club level, within a given institution.

RECORDS:

1. Responsibility for the keeping of records, both scoring and historical, shall rest with the Secretary.
2. All NCIFL records, scoring, etc., shall be maintained by the Secretary and may be open for inspection by the Governing Council at any time.
3. When there is no League Secretary, these duties fall to the President.

LEAGUE MEETINGS:

1. All schools intending to fence in the NCIFL should be present at the Spring League meeting.
2. When a vote is taken, it shall be counted in the name of the school, one vote per authorized representative of the school.
3. A member of the Governing Council may vote by proxy; however, the member given the proxy must have the consent in writing and it must be properly signed and dated.

ELIGIBILITY:

1. There are no eligibility requirements other than the competing fencers of the member institutions must be a student of that institution regardless of their standing, status, and unit load. Students must simply be registered in classes at the member college and must be able to show a current student ID in order to validate their claim. Fencers shall be enrolled in not fewer than one (1) credit/hour/unit per academic session (trimester or semester), and must be enrolled during the session in which competition takes place.
2. Present high school students who have accepted early commitments to post-secondary institutions are not college students and are excluded from competition at NCIFL tournaments, regardless of pre-enrollment status.

FACILITIES:

1. The host’s authorized representative must have the fencing facility open and available no less than one hour before the scheduled, pre-announced starting time. The facility should remain open for no less than 45 minutes following the competition so that fencers may have the opportunity shower and change clothes.
2. The host’s authorized representative is responsible for providing directions to the facility, alerting teams where to park and, when possible, waiving any parking fees.
3. The host’s authorized representative is responsible for notifying schools of available hotels in the area at least one week prior to the competition.

COMPETITIONS:

1. The rules for competitions used by the NCIFL shall be the Rules for Competitions as attached to these by-laws.
2. If the member institution hosting the event wishes to vary the Rules for Competitions, that institution must announce the rule and/or format changes prior to the date of the competition. A two-thirds vote of the member institutions attending is required for approval.

Note: some tournaments may include “alternative” competitions, such as “Rules of 1908” or “Doubles Epee;” these events are separate from any USFA-compliant NCIFL competition, and do not require League support or approval; similarly, they will not count toward Club Cup points (cf).

3. Each member institution must carry an emergency contact folder to the competition. The contact folder will contain emergency phone numbers for all competitors, insurance and/or other relevant medical information, and the emergency procedures for the school.
4. Each Governing Member will bring to each competition at least two fully-working strips of scoring equipment (scoring box, reels, floor cords). Additionally, each club will provide one (1) extension cords, 3 clipboards, 3 time clocks/stopwatches, 1 foil and 1 epee weight (2 weights), and 1 set of epee shims.
5. No fencer is allowed to use alcohol, or to use or possess prescription drugs a manner inconsistent with an active prescription at any fencing meet. Illegal drugs are similarly forbidden. Any fencer found to be violating this rule is subject to disciplinary action by the member institution and/or the host member club sponsoring an event or the NCIFL.
6. The host institution has the right to double strip any weapon during pool bouts to ensure the smooth and timely running of the competition.
7. All teams shall be coed, that is consisting of at least one male and one female fencer and that all weapon teams shall compete at the same time and at the same facility.
8. USFA team rules of substitution apply with the exception that the substitution must remain within the NCIFL rules for coed teams; following substitution, the active team must still be coed.
9. This item has been moved to the Rules For Competitions.

SCORING:

1. The tournament score sheets should be sent to the Secretary immediately following the meet.

AWARDS and MEDALS:

1. As ratified at the Fall 2005 League Meeting, the League’s annual award shall be the Club Championship Cup. See Appendix A.

President’s Note: As of Fall 2011, the Club Championship has been suspended, pending a League Secretary or Championship scorekeeper.

2. All events shall award medals to fencers placing 1st, 2nd and 3rd (two medals for 3rd for dual-placing), regardless of the sex of fencer.
3. In Novice events, women fencers shall be separately recognized for placing in the Novice Events

OFFICIALS:

1. The host institution is responsible for providing a sufficient number of properly-trained officials. They should be the best available and as impartial as possible. In some instances, it might be necessary for the traveling school/s to take officials if the host cannot supply the number needed.
2. The host institution shall inform officials of the NCIFL rules variations for collegiate meets prior to the beginning of competition; it is the host club’s responsibility to ensure all referees are fully aware of differences in operation between the USFA and NCIFL, prior to commencement of competition.
3. Officials are in charge of their piste, not of the meet. Coaches or authorized representatives of each member institution present shall comprise the Bout Committee.
4. Officials should be encouraged to dress in a professional and appropriate manner and be neatly groomed.
5. Officials should be at the fencing facility and ready for briefing by the Bout Committee, no less than thirty (30) minutes before posted starting time for each event.
6. If officials are not available, the Bout Committee shall select from available qualified fencers and coaches as many officials as needed.
7. All individual competitions may be self-directed in the pool rounds. Unless due to circumstances where qualified referees are not available, foil and saber direct elimination rounds are not to be refereed by competing fencers. All team events must not be self-directed, unless, due to unforeseen circumstance, they must. In the event, fencers must direct events then the Bout Committee must agree that they may do so.
8. Officials should be current members of USFA, and should have the highest rating possible.
9. The hosting Member Club shall pay USFA-rated officials a minimum $80.00, and unrated officials $60.00 for each full day of service; officials serving less than a full day will be remunerated at a rate agreeable to both host and the official in question (as ratified Spring 2007). Member Clubs may pay more to highly-rated referees whose skills are sufficient to justify greater compensation.

AMENDMENTS TO THE CODE OF OPERATIONS:

1. Amendments to the Code of Operations and By-Laws shall take effect the beginning of the academic year following the year of adoption unless unanimously approved by all authorized members of the Governing Council, present at the meeting, to take effect sooner.
2. Any Governing member institution may request changes to the Code of Operations or By-Laws, by proposing a motion at a Semi-Annual League Meeting.
3. Said proposals should be discussed at one of the two regularly scheduled League meetings each year. If time does not permit, the Secretary can notify the members of the desired change and call for a mail ballot (electronic or otherwise).



II

NCIFL Rules For Competitions

Governing Rules:

Except as otherwise noted all tournaments follow the most current USFA rules. The NCIFL does NOT use the USFA Operations Manual. The tournament format and rules listed here may be altered by the host institution according to Article 12 of the By-Laws.

II.1 Novice Tournaments:

1. Competitions labeled as “Novice” are restricted to novice fencers only.
2. Novice Tournaments are fenced “dry” (i.e., non-electrically), with line judges until the Round of 8, at which time they will be fenced using electrical equipment. Note: see rules for Dry Fencing below.
3. Any fencer who began fencing at any establishment one calendar year or less from the date of a tournament or who has an equivalent amount of fencing experience from a prior time classifies as a 'Novice Fencer' and may compete in novice events.
4. The “Novice Fencer” classification includes the fencing experience in all weapons; Fencers with more than one calendar year of fencing experience in any weapon, at any time previously, do not qualify for novice events.

Example 1: Fencer A went to Saber Camp after the summer before entering high school as a 9th grade student. Fencer A may be considered a novice in the NCIFL, as their fencing experience is less than one calendar year.

Example 2: Fencer B fenced in high school during 9th and 10th grades; Fencer B may not be considered a NCIFL Novice Fencer, as she has more than 1 calendar year of fencing experience.

5. Experience for Novice Fencers is cumulative; if a Novice fencer has 6 months of experience before NCIFL participation, that Novice has only 6 months of NCIFL eligibility remaining.
6. At a given tournament a novice fencer may fence in the novice foil event or one or more advanced events, but not both novice and advanced.
7. Fencing in an advanced event does not disqualify a novice fencer from fencing in the novice event at a subsequent tournament, provided that fencer still qualifies as a novice.

II.2 Tournament Standards

1. Novice pool and direct elimination rounds until the round of 8 will be fenced standard and will be judged according to the attached Rules For Judging By Jury.
1. Novice direct elimination rounds of top 8 and above shall be conducted using electric equipment.
2. Each attending institution shall be responsible for providing electrical equipment for their fencers that reach the round of 8.
2. All advanced weapon events shall be fenced with electric equipment. Each attending institution shall be responsible for providing electrical equipment for their fencers.
3. All pool rounds shall be fenced to 5 touches using the 3 minute bout protocol.
4. All direct elimination rounds shall be fenced to 10 touches over two three-minute periods with a single minute break between (USFA Veteran format).
5. All events shall advance 100% of pools to direct elimination rounds unless otherwise announced to all fencers prior to the beginning of the pools.

II.3 Equipment:

1. The equipment used by competitions and competitors in the NICIFL shall be the same as that allowed and required by the USFA.
2. Because of the nature of collegiate club equipment sharing, no fencer shall face a penalty for malfunctioning equipment, or not bringing a second weapon or body cord to the strip.
3. DE rounds shall enforce weight and shim testing, however no penalty for malfunctioning equipment, replacement requirement only (except in the case of obvious fraud).
4. Tournaments shall not require knickers. However, full leg covering is required in all events. Leg covering must not have pockets, loops, or straps that would readily entangle a blade or catch a point (e.g., no cargo- or carpenter-type pants or short pants). At no time shall a fencer show any skin when en garde.
5. All fencers are required to wear underarm protection. The underarm protector must be worn as the first layer under the jacket, and worn outside of any hard-shell type chest protection.
6. Each director maintains the right to declare a piece of equipment unsafe for competition, and require the competitor to replace the equipment within reasonable time with no penalty.

II.4 Coaching

1. There is no 'coaching time out' in the Northern California fencing league; on-strip coaching is permitted under the same restraints covered by the USFA.
2. During the bout coaches are free to interact as long as they adhere to the same standards covered by any person not on the strip (i.e., they must not enter the strip without directors consent, and must not disturb the good order of the strip (class 3 offense, c.f.).

II.5 Team Entry/Scoring

1. Each advanced event shall have team scoring comprised by the best possible combination of coed team members (1 male, 2 female or 2 male, 1 female).
2. Host schools have the option of fencing team events for all places or having a tie for third place; this option must be announced before the start of pool rounds. When there is no announcement prior to the start of fencing, the default will be a tie for third place (per USFA; ratified Fall 2005).
3. Each team will be scored by the sum of their placements, overall team standing determined by lowest individual sum placement.

II.6 Awards for Placing

1. As host schools have the option of fencing individual events both Novice and Advanced for all places or having a tie for third place. When there is no announcement prior to the start of fencing, the default will be a tie for third place (per USFA Rules; ratified Fall 2005).
2. The top three places in all League Events, novice and advanced, will receive a medal or trophy appropriate to the fencer’s finish. The host club is responsible for providing medals to finishing fencers (ratified Fall 2007).
3. To better recognize and encourage female fencers, when there is no separate women’s event (i.e., always, at the time of this writing in 2009) women will be separately recognized for their placing, and will receive a medal appropriate to their place. Such places will be relative to other female fencers who finish and place in each weapon.
4. Novice fencers will receive medal awards similarly to advanced fencing events (c.f.).
5. The highest placing male and female fencer in the novice event shall receive a new, working electric foil at the expense of the host school. Each novice fencer is eligible for a single foil; in the event a fencer who has previously won a novice event in a given season and who has already received a foil, that prize shall be ceded to the next highest finishing fencer of the same sex.

III

Duties of Governing Member Clubs

III.1 Governing Member Clubs will and must comply with rules above for providing equipment and officials for each League Tournament (c.f.).

III.2 The growth of the NCIFL may necessitate the addition of more Governing Members and their respective Home Tournaments. More than four tournaments per season may be possible only with a rotating schedule, which may permit up to eight (8) Governing Member clubs.

III.3 To facilitate such a possibility, Governing members must host a home event not less than once per two seasons, but also not more than once per season, to mitigate any home advantage.

III.4 Continuity of the tournament schedule and development of Novice Fencers being paramount concerns, the status of Governing Members shall be contingent on hosting a League Tournament within the expected schedule.

III.5 Failure of a Governing Member to host such a tournament will result in that Member losing its Governing Status prior to the next following League Meeting, and will not have voting rights at that or subsequent meetings until Governing Membership status is reinstated.

IV

Equipment Protocols

IV.1 The League recognizes equipment standards are fluid in the USFA and FIE. Any such change at the USFA or FIE level is not necessitated to the League until ratified at a Fall or Spring League meeting.

IV.2 The League further recognizes the cost to upgrade or acquire such newly-legislated equipment may be prohibitive in the short term, and reserves the right to conduct competitions using equipment consistent with prior standards.

IV.3 The League requires every Tournament be run under a single protocol; e.g. all scoring boxes use the same timing standard. Such standards are not limited to electronic devices, but may include, but not be limited to, standards related to weapons (e.g., S-2000 saber blades) or uniform changes (e.g., changes to the target in foil).

V

Rules For Judging By Jury

Taken from Fencing Rules and Manual

By the Amateur Fencers League of America, 1965

CHAPTER VII THE DIRECTION OF A BOUT AND THE JUDGING OF HITS

B. – JUDGING BY JURY

The duties of the President. The President will take up his position at a distance from the piste which will enable him completely to follow the actions of the fencers and will follow the competitors in their movements on the piste. He directs the bout according to the provisions of the rules (Cf. 227ss, 322ss, 415ss). Positions occupied by the judges. Two judges are placed on each side of the piste on the President’s right and left respectively, and slightly behind the competitors. The two judges placed on the President’s right hand should watch the fencer who is placed on the President’s left hand and especially verify the arrival of hits which this competitor may receive. Similarly, the two judges placed on the President’s left hand should watch the fencer who is placed on the President’s right hand and especially verify the arrival of hits which this competitor may receive (however Cf. 69/4). Method of Judging Procedure. The President, who alone is responsible for the direction of the bout, gives the orders. However, any other member of the jury may give the command “Halt.” but only if that judge thinks that there is an accident. Similarly the timekeeper stops the bout by calling “Halt” when time expires. As soon as a judge sees a hit (whether on a valid surface or not) arrive on the fencer whom he is watching he must raise his hand in order to advise the President. All judging is carried out aloud and without the members of the jury leaving the positions they occupy. The jury is not bound to take account of the acknowledgement of a hit properly made by a competitor (Cf. 606). The jury first decides as to the materiality of the hit or hits. The President then alone decides against which fencer a hit shall be scored by applying the conventional rules for each weapon. Materiality of the Hit As soon as the bout has stopped, the President reconstructs briefly the movements which composed the ast fencing phrase before the order “Halt” (this formality is not obligatory at epee) and in the course of his analysis he questions the two judges watching one fencer in order to ascertain whether in their opinion any of the movements occurring in his analysis of the phrase has resulted in a hit on the competitor; (the President) then follows the same procedure with two other judges for the other competitor (this formality must be observed at all three weapons). When the judges are questioned they must reply in one of the following ways: “Yes”, “Yes but not valid,” “No,” or “I abstain.” The president votes last. The President then aggregates the votes thus made from each side, the opinion of each judge counts as one vote, the opinion of the President counts as one and a half votes while abstentions are not counted at all: If both judges on the same side agree in a positive opinion (either both say “Yes”, or both say “No”, or both say “Yes but not valid”) their judgement prevails. If one of the judges has a definite opinion and the other abstains, the opinion of the Present prevails since his vote is over-riding; if he also abstains, the decision of the judge who has the definite opinion prevails. If the two judges concerned are positive but contrary opinions or if both abstain, the president may decide according to his own observations (1); if he also abstains, the hit is regarded as doubtful (Cf. 5 below). Examples: Judge A says “no”; Judge B “yes but not valid”; even if the President considers the hit valid, the judgement must be “no hit”; but in this example since one Judge and the President agree that there has been contact with the point on the opponent, after the decision “no hit” anything which occurs thereafter must be annulled. Judge A says “yes”; but Judge B says “yes but not valid,” the President abstains; he cannot therefore score the hit since there is a doubt as to whether it arrived on a valid surface or not; however, since both judges are agreed that there was contact with the point on the opponent, after the decision “no hit” anything which occurs subsequently must be annulled. In the case of a double abstention, the President may, as an exceptional measure, as the opinions of the two other judges if he considers that they were better placed to see the hit – for example: a riposte on the back side on a fencer who has made a fleche attack and has passed his opponent. A doubtful hit is never scored against the competitor who might have received it; but, on the other hand, any hit made subsequently or simultaneously in the same phrase by the fencer who has thus been granted the benefit of the doubt must also be annulled; (but Cf. 38) as regards a hit made subsequently by the fencer who originally made the doubtful hit, the following course will apply: If the new hit (remise, redoublement, or riposte) is made by a fencer who made the doubtful hit without any hit having been made by his opponent, this new hit must be scored. But if the doubt concerns the surface on which the hit arrived (one “Yes” and one “Yes but not valid”) no other hit in this phrase can be scored. This is also the case if the opponent has made a doubtful ht between the doubtful hit and the new hit made by the competitor.

IV

RESOLUTION OF CONFLICTS BETWEEN MEMBER CLUBS

Ratified Spring 2008

Introduction

The League recognizes that from time to time there may be a conflict between one or more member clubs, or between one or more member clubs and the League as a body. Such conflicts, if left unresolved or pursued heedlessly have the potential interrupt the good order of the League and threaten the existence of member Clubs under their respective University or College Sports Club Charter. It is hoped that such serious conflicts will be rare, and, ideally, resolved by the principal parties at hand.

IT IS TO BE UNDERSTOOD THE LEAGUE MAY TAKE ACTION AGAINST AN INDIVIDUAL FENCER OR CLUB AS DEEMED APPROPRIATE, THE GOAL BEING THE PRESERVATION AND CONTINUED GOOD FUNCTIONING OF THE NCIFL AND NCIFL MEMBER CLUBS AS SUBORDINATES TO THEIR RESPECTIVE SPONSORING ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS.

V.1 Procedure
If, during a League Event, a conflict occurs between members of different clubs, which cannot be resolved by those parties immediately present, the following orders shall be in effect:

1. The injured party will verbally notify the League President of the particulars of the incident.
1. If the President is not present or is otherwise unavailable, the Vice President shall be notified and shall assume the duties of the President described in 2 & 3 below, then notify the President. The Vice President shall thereafter continue as a Witness (c.f.).
2. The President (or Vice President) shall request a brief written description of the event from both the Reporting Party and the Defending Party. These documents shall be provided within 24 hours.
3. The President (or Vice President, as needed) will seek witnesses as may be appropriate, and request their written descriptions of the incident, which shall also be provided within 24 hours.
4. Following such notification, the competition shall proceed normally.
5. A reasonable effort shall be made to insulate the complainant from further confrontation, either direct or indirect.
1. Insulating actions of this sort may include (but are not limited to) a temporary change of officials, distancing of allied team members from Reporting/Defending parties, or any other reasonable actions as may be requested and easily accomplished to facilitate continued fencing in good order by all fencers, provided they do not violate League Bylaws or unreasonably inconvenience other, non-party fencers.
6. Based on the reports and investigation, the President shall determine the appropriate response to the conflict.

V.2 Compliance. The degree to which improperly resolved conflicts can injure clubs and the League should not be lightly treated, and such conflicts must be treated with all due gravity. In this regard, and as a condition of NCIFL Membership, League clubs agree to the above, and further, agree to be bound by the above rules and subject to the following penalties for failure to comply:

1. A first offense will result in a written warning signed by two of the three Combined Officers of the League (President, Vice President or Secretary). Said warning will include a reconstruction of the event which precipitated League action.
2. A second offense within a 3-season period will result in that club losing any Governing Member status for a period of 3 competition seasons, including hosting League events. N.B.: for the purposes of compliance a “season” is any annual season in which that Club participates; it need not be contiguous, i.e., a club cannot simply sit out a three year penalty, but must participate in a total of three competition seasons to expiate the failure to comply.



Appendix A

Northern California Intercollegiate Fencing League

Championship Cup Rules & Scoring

2009-2010 Note: Per the Spring Meeting of the League, the addition of “Medal Points” has been added to the scoring protocol for the cup. As ratified at the Spring 2009 League Meeting, the top three finishers in each Mixed Advanced Event (specifically excluding Novice and Women’s) will receive additional points specific to their placing.

1. Introduction

The NCIFL Championship Cup (“The Cup,” hereafter) is proposed as an award designed to recognize a specific participating institution’s overall contribution and excellence in the sport of Fencing. Each participating college earns points towards the championship based not only on the placement of individual fencers, but on how well each college is represented in each tournament. As such, the Cup’s goals are twofold:

1). To promote and encourage member colleges to develop a fencing program for participation in the NCIFL, and;

2). To recognize and celebrate the achievement of the college with the greatest overall accomplishment throughout each fencing season.

Therefore, scoring is based on a combination of attendance and achievement throughout the intercollegiate fencing season comprising the four major events at UCSC, CalPoly, UCB, and UCD.

2. Presentation, Maintenance and Return of The Cup

Presentation of The Cup will be at the final event of the season (At the time of this writing, UC Davis hosts the final event of the competition season. However, it is acknowledged such may not always be the case).

Official collection and collation of event placing data will be the responsibility of the college team holding the final event of the season and the designated league secretary. Each hosting college is responsible for delivering attendance and placement data to the League Secretary, or other person appointed to collate points. Failure to do so before the next event in the season will exclude that college from cup consideration for the remainder of the season.

The winning college will take possession of The Cup for the duration of the following season, and is responsible for its protection and maintenance during that time. The winning college has the option of displaying The Cup at competition events in the following year, but is required to return The Cup to the final event of the season, so that it may be presented to the winning team.


3. Engraving
The winning college is responsible for engraving and the costs of engraving their team name and year on The Cup’s pedestal. Such engraving must be consistent with those previous in terms of letter shape and size.


4. Disclosure and Error-checking

Scoring data will be made public after each tournament, preferably via email or website. Participating schools are invited to error-check the placings and points after they are posted, and are invited to call attention to any errors, real or perceived, in the standings.

Errors may be reported to the League President, League Secretary, or such persons as are delegated to maintain data for The Cup for up to 15 days following the posting date; errors reported after that time will stand as part of that season’s record.

5. Attendance
Each team will receive +1 point credit for each team member that finishes and places in the individual event results.

5a. Fencers who register but do not compete in the day’s competition will be excluded from the scoring.


5b. Fencers who withdraw due to medical reasons will retain points earned from any placing bonus that should apply.


5c. Fencers who receive a BLACK CARD will be excluded from all points for that event; that is, their school will not receive any points for that fencer’s attendance or placing.


6. Scoring: Placement Bonus
Different events will have different degrees of difficulty based on numbers of entrants; finishing 11th in an event with 11 entries should not be rewarded bonus points for placement the same as someone who competes in an event with 60 entrants and also finishes 11th. Bonus points for placement will be pro-rated on Medals and a “Percentage of Finish” basis.

6a. Points will be awarded to each school based on the finishing position of each fencer in each event, for the Advanced Mixed Events only; +3 points for each Gold Medal, +2 points for each Silver Medal and +1 point for each Bronze medal.

6b. Additionally, advanced events will be broken up by number of entrants into 10% intervals, rounded to the nearest integer. Only the top five (5) such intervals receive bonus points; individuals placing in the bottom 50% receive 1 point for attendance only.
Note: all competitors receive 1 point for attendance; in an event with 54 fencers, the gold medalist receives 9 points: 1 for attendance, 5 for being in the top interval, and 3 for taking first place

Example 2: with 23 fencers in an event, 10% = 2.3, rounded to 2.

6c. Placement points will be awarded to the top five intervals, or the “approximate top 50%,” (see Example 3, below) according to the following table:
+5 for each team member placing in the top 10% rounded interval.
+4 for each team member placing in the following 10% rounded interval.
+3 for each team member placing in the following 10% rounded interval.
+2 for each team member placing in the following 10% rounded interval.
+1 for each team member placing in the following 10% rounded interval.


Example 3: the Advanced Sabre event has 43 fencers competing.  10% of 43 is 4.3. Rounding to the nearest integer, the Placement Points brackets are intervals of 4 places. Note that five intervals of 4 places only gives placing points to the top 20 fencers. Were there 46 fencers, 10% would be 4.6, rounded to 5 places per interval. Five intervals with 5 fencers each is now 25 fencers, which is more than exactly half of the total of 46, hence “approximately top 50%.”

6d. Placement points for attendance only (+1) will be awarded to the remainder of the final standing (or the “approximate bottom 50%”)

6e. Placement points are only for performance in the individual events. No placement points will be earned for placement in any team event or for any event in which a placing is dependent on a subset of the mixed events (e.g., women’s placing as implemented in 2009-2010; a woman fencer placing 5th overall and first among women does not get extra points. Only her standing in the Mixed event counts towards cup points).

6f. Should events be segregated by sex, each event will be addressed as another individual event and will count towards placement points.


6g. When there is a tie for 3rd place, equal placement points are awarded to both 3rd place fencers.

6h. Novice events will be broken up by number of entrants twice:
1) approximately 50% of the field, rounded to the nearest integer.
2) with the top 50% multiplied by ⅓, rounded to the nearest integer.

Example 4: with 23 fencers in the Novice event, 50% = 11.5, rounded to 12. 12 x ⅓ gives brackets of 4.


6i. Placement points for Novice events will be awarded to the top three intervals (as per Rule 6h) according to the following table:
+3 for each team member placing in the first ⅓ of the top 50% rounded interval.
+2 for each team member placing in the second ⅓ of the top 50% rounded interval.
+1 for each team member placing in the third ⅓ of the top 50% rounded interval.
+0 for each team member placing in the bottom 50% rounded interval.


7.Tie-Breaking Rules
7a. In the event of a tie, final placing in the overall point standings will be determined by examining 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishes between the tying teams. A separate tally will award +3 points for every 1st place finish, +2 points for every 2nd, and +1 for 3rd. The team with the highest score out of this tally will be determined the winner of The Cup.

7b. Only placings from the advanced weapon individual events, will be used for the tie breaking tally. No results from novice or teams-only events will be counted.

7c. Tie Tally Example

	Team A			Team B			Team C
	F	E	S	F	E	S	F	E	S
1st	||	|	0	|	|||	0	|	0	||||
	+6	+3	+0	+3	+9	+0	+3	+0	+12
2nd	|	|	|	||	|	|||	|	||	0
	+2	+2	+2	+4	+2	+6	+2	+4	+0
3rd	|	||	|||	||	0	|	||	||	0
	+1	+2	+3	+2	+0	+1	+2	+2	+0
s	+10	+7	+5	+9	+11	+7	+7	+6	+12
T	+22			+27			+25
	Result: Team B wins any ties for The Cup.