2010 Mid-Atlantic Junior Handbook
All Juniors, parents, coaches should be familier with the rules and procedures in this handbook.
PDF Version - 2010 mid atlantic division handbook
Code Of Conduct - ussa-code-of-conduct
1. Division Information and Contacts
A. Mission Statement:
Mid-Atlantic operates as a division of the United States Ski Association (USSA) with a focus on cross-country ski competition and development. The Mid-Atlantic Division is governed by the Mid-Atlantic Competition Committee (MACC) and its Sub-Committees, in conjunction with USSA and the New York State Ski Racing Association – Nordic, Inc (NYSSRA- Nordic, Inc.). The division’s goals for this region are to implement on-going development programs which promote cross-country skiing and competition, provide pipelines to elite development programs, oversee Junior Olympic (National) qualifying events, policies and procedures, and to work closely with the New York State Ski Racing Association – Nordic, Inc (NYSSRA-Nordic, Inc).
2. USSA Mid-Atlantic Division Junior Olympic Team: Athlete Qualifying Procedures and Policies
A. Selection Criteria for the Mid-Atlantic Junior Olympic Team:
The Mid-Atlantic (Mid-A) Division of the United States Ski Association (USSA) is committed to developing excellence in cross-country skiing. The Mid-Atlantic Division includes New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia. The Mid-Atlantic Division will be selecting a team this season for competition in the 2010 USSA Junior Olympics in Presque Isle, Maine, March 8 – 14, 2010. The Mid-Atlantic Competition Committee has developed a team selection process for naming the Junior Olympic team as stated below.
B. Licensing requirements:
1) Athletes must have a current race season NYSSRA Nordic license prior to the first JOQ. It is the athlete’s responsibility
to have their NYSSRA Nordic license and competition number in place before the first Junior Olympic qualifier. Sign-up online through nyssranordic.com or skireg.com
2) To compete in the Junior Olympics, athletes must be a competition-licensed member of USSA. Contact USSA online at
ussa.org, by mail at PO Box 100, 1 Victory Lane, Park City, UT 84060, by phone at (435) 647-2666 or fax to (435) 647-2052 regarding membership. The Eastern Division must be listed as the athlete’s home division in order to compete for Mid-Atlantic at the Junior Olympics.
3) Any college skier who has not previously skied for Mid-Atlantic needs to submit a letter of intent to the Mid-Atlantic
Chairman by January 1, 2010 stating that he or she wishes to compete for Mid-Atlantic at the 2010 Junior Olympics. This can be sent via email.
C. Qualifying standards for the 2010 USSA Mid-Atlantic Junior Olympic (JO) Team:
1) Athletes who qualify through automatic USSA Qualifications (USSA rules 70.1.2 – 70.1.5). See the 2010 USSA Nordic Competition Guide for more details. These skiers can enter JO’s as part of the team above the quota from their home division.
2) Up to 15 J1/OJ male and 15 J1/OJ female skiers (with no more than 12 athletes in each age/sex category) will be chosen for the USSA Mid-A JO Team. Up to 6 J2 male and 6 J2 female skiers will be chosen for the USSA Mid-A JO Team.
3) Automatic qualification for any skier who finishes in the top 40 on the final junior ranking list from the 2010 US Nationals in Anchorage, AK. These skiers count towards the team’s quota.
4) Athletes must complete 4 out of the 6 USSA Mid-A JO Qualifiers. Athletes must count at least one freestyle point race
and one classic point race. An athlete’s 4 best point races will be averaged for a final 2009-10 USSA Mid-A JO Team ranking list based on the USSA points calculation system. If an athlete finishes in the top 5 in a Mid-A JOQ, the athlete’s USSA 2009 list 5 overall points will be used to score the Mid-A JOQ. If an athlete finishes in the top 5 in a Mid-A JOQ and does not carry USSA 2009 list 5 overall points, the athlete’s points from the 2008-09 Mid-A JO Team final ranking list will be used first and if those are not available, the athlete will be assigned 350.00 points for calculation purposes. Athletes must count at least 2 out of the 6 Mid-A JOQ races. Athletes will be allowed to substitute up to 2 race points from either 2009 US Senior Nationals or current season NENSA JOQs, which occur prior to the final Mid-A JOQ. Athletes are responsible for submitting race points to the Mid-A Competition Committee for verification. J1/OJ athletes will be scored and ranked together. J2 athletes will be scored and ranked separately. An athlete’s point race average must be below 350.00 to qualify for the 2010 USSA Mid-Atlantic Junior Olympic Team.
5) Results from Mid-A JOQ races will be posted to the website within 24 hours after finish. Results from Mid-A JOQ races are final 48 hours after finish. Points for the Mid-A JOQ will be posted to the website within 72 hours after the finish. Points for the Mid-A JOQ are final 96 hours after the finish. It is the athlete’s responsibility to verify that their Mid-A JOQ results and points are correct.
6) College skiers may qualify by any of the above listed methods for all skiers, or by one or more of the following methods:
a) Automatic qualification for the top 5 juniors on the final NCAA East, NCAA West or NCAA Central ranking lists
(USSA rule 70.1.4). These skiers can enter JO’s as part of the team above the quota from their home division.
b) Automatic qualification for any college skier who places in top 20 at Senior Nationals.
c) Automatic qualification for any college skier who qualifies for NCAA championships.
d) Have qualified for the USSA Mid-A Junior Olympic Team previously and are racing on their college carnival team
with at least two carnival finishes in the top 50 in an EISA carnival.
e) Qualify for the 2010 New England Division Junior Olympic Team.
7) Qualify for the 2010 New England Division Junior Olympic Team.
8 ) There is a force majeure and Mid-Atlantic Competition Committee discretion to make exceptions to these qualifying standards.
D. Mid-Atlantic Junior Olympic Team Selection Priority and Naming:
1) The USSA Mid-Atlantic Junior Olympic Team selection will be prioritized and named in the following order:
a) Athletes who qualify through automatic USSA qualifications as stated in USSA rules 70.1.2 – 70.1.5.
See the 2010 USSA Nordic Competition Guide for more details.
b) Athletes who qualify through Mid-Atlantic qualification criteria, in order as stated above in part 2.C 1-8
(qualifying standards for the 2010 USSA Mid-Atlantic Junior Olympic (JO) Team).
c) Any open spots may be filled by athletes based on the final 2009-10 USSA Mid-Atlantic JO Team ranking lists,
first starting with J1/OJ athletes (up to 15), then J2 athletes (up to 6) at the discretion of the Mid-Atlantic Competition Committee.
2) Naming of the 2010 USSA Mid-Atlantic JO Team will take place following the final Mid-A JOQ. A final team list will be
posted to the website.
3) Appeal Process to the Mid-Atlantic JO Team Naming:
a) Pay the $50 check deposit to NYSSRA Nordic, Inc. This deposit is refundable only if the appeal is upheld.
b) The appeal must be in writing and turned in on the day of the Mid-A JO Team naming to either the Mid-A
Chairman, Mid-A Junior Sub-Committee Chairman or the Mid-A JO Team Head Coach.
c) The appeal will be reviewed by the Mid-A Chairman, Mid-A Junior Sub-Committee Chairman and the Mid-A JO
Team Head Coach. A decision will be made within 24 hours of team naming.
E. Mid-Atlantic Team Rules and Guidelines:
All athletes who have qualified and will compete for the USSA Mid-Atlantic Division at Junior Olympics will be expected to follow the rules and regulations laid out by the Mid-Atlantic Competition Committee and follow the USSA Code of Conduct (see part 4 of USSA Mid-Atlantic Division handbook). This includes competing in all races (both classic and skating), traveling with the team and staying with the team at designated housing throughout the duration of the event.
F. Mid-Atlantic Sponsorship and Donation Distribution:
Financial aid may be available to Mid-Atlantic skiers through sponsorships and/or donations made to the NYSSRA Junior Development Fund. From the total of all money donated within that year, 50% will go into the Mid-Atlantic account, to serve as support money for JO trip expenses. The remaining 50% will be distributed as follows:
1) Athletes who obtained All-American Status at the 2009 JO’s and will be competing in the 2010 JO’s will split the remaining money up to 25% of the trip cost.
2) If 25% of the trip cost is paid to those athletes and there is money remaining it will go to a scholarship fund. Any athlete competing in JO’s can apply for a scholarship on an application basis for each cross-country ski season. Applicants must be current NYSSRA Nordic members and submit a letter of application, which states specific reasons for request and cites performance with examples of results. Deadline to submit letters of application is February 6, 2010. Letters should be mailed to Julie Hinsdill, Secretary – USSA Mid-Atlantic Division, 9160 Dean Rd., Boonville, NY 13309
3. USSA Mid-Atlantic JOQ Competition Schedule (final as of) November 24, 2009
see JOQ Schedule - under mid-atlantic
4. USSA Code of Conduct - see above pdf
5. USSA Mid-Atlantic Elite Team
A. Selection Criteria:
1) J2 or older skiing for the USSA Mid-Atlantic Division.
2) Top 10 American in World Junior Trial or J1 Scandinavian Trip Trial results for any one race involved in the qualification process for those trips.
3) Top 10 American in their age group in any one individual race at the previous season Junior Nationals.
4) Collegiate skiers can be selected by qualifying for NCAA Nationals in their school’s home division.
5) U-23 skiers can be selected by finishing in the top 15 Americans on the U-23 result list in any race at US Nationals.
6) Seniors can be selected by finishing in the top 25 Americans in any race at US Nationals.
B. Naming and support benefits:
Athletes can qualify during the 2009-10 season and will be named to the Elite team at the 2010 Spring Mid-Atlantic meeting. Elite Team athletes will receive free entry to Mid-Atlantic JOQs the following season and financial subsidization (as available) to be used toward training camps and equipment.
2009/10 Elite Team
Steve Mangan (Honeoye-Falls Lima High School)
Charlie Bencze (NYSEF)
6. Directory of governing bodies
US Ski Association
The Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) is the national governing body for Olympic skiing and snowboarding. Founded in 1904, the nearly century-old organization provides leadership and direction for tens of thousands of young skiers and snowboarders who share an Olympic dream. As a company, USSA’s management and staff coordinate a nationwide program in seven distinctly different Olympic sports — alpine, cross country, adaptive, freestyle, ski jumping, Nordic combined, and snowboarding. The U.S. Ski Team has been based in Utah since in 1974, with the now U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association consolidating with the Team in Park City in 1988. Rule book, Code of Conduct and Athletes Rights and Responsibilities can all be found at the USSA website. http://www.ussa.org
New York State Ski Racing Association
NYSSRA-Nordic, Inc. is a membership organization, which works in conjunction with state and national governing bodies to support the development of the Nordic sports in New York State. NYSSRA-Nordic serves various disciplines of Nordic skiing, including biathlon, cross country skiing, ski orienteering, ski jumping, Nordic combined and telemark. Spring and fall meetings are held and are open to all members. http://www.nyssranordic.com
New England Nordic Ski Association
The New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) is the Olympic development organization for cross-country skiing in New England as well as the umbrella for most organized Nordic skiing events in the region. NENSA hosts over 50 events and more than 20 clinics for skiers and coaches at venues across the Northeast. Cross-country skiing, as practiced by our youth skiers and families, is a lifetime activity firmly rooted in New England tradition. Cross-country ski racing, as performed in the NENSA Eastern Cup series, and at our Championship Events, is a fast, explosive, and visually dynamic sport. It is the mission of the New England Nordic Ski Association to implement year-round educational, recreational, and competitive programs at all levels of cross-country ski racing. NENSA works to sustain a vital and active skiing community in New England, and to provide the support structure necessary to bring athletes to their highest potential at regional, national, and international events. http://www.nensa.net