The Need for Technical Officials

An ongoing concern for members of the NSWWA technical committee for many years has been the availability of technical officials for all the roles required which may vary depending on the standard of the competition involved.

In every competition, referees must concentrate on the main task of adjudicating the lifts performed by the athletes. At competitions held under IWF rules, three referees (a centre referee and two side referees) and one reserve referee are appointed for each category. The competitors are weighed naked or in underwear, in the presence of referees of their respective sex.

During the competition, the Jury members monitor the work of the referees. The function of the Jury is to ensure that the Technical Rules are being followed and applied. The Jury also act as examiners for the promotion of referees.

The duties of the Technical controllers are as follows:

Ensures that the referees wear the correct uniform.

Before the competition, inspect the outfits of the competitors and enforce the rules when necessary.

When a correction has to be made on the athlete's outfit or a lubricant has to be removed and the athlete has already been called, the clock will continue to run

During the course of the competition ensure that only the accredited number of officials accompany the athletes in the competition and warm-up areas.

During the course of the competition checks the information of the scoreboard (correct lifter, attempt, weight, time, records) and allows lifters to go on stage once the announcements are complete.

Control the cleaning of the bar and the platform.

The duties of the timekeepers are as follows:

To operate the timing clock when the athletes are called to perform their attempts during the course of the competition, in accordance with the Rules. To stop the clock immediately the barbell is raised from the platform; to restart the clock if the barbell has not reached the height of the knees.

One or more speakers must be appointed. Their duty is to make the appropriate announcements for the efficient running of the competition. This includes naming the competitor called to the platform, the name of the country/state/club, the weight of the barbell and the number of the attempt. The speaker also notifies the next competitor in advance. An assistant to the speaker(s) whose function is to accept the weight changes from the marshals and inform the speaker may be appointed

Please contact John Way This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you wish for further information and /or on becoming a technical official.