RYA Code of Conduct for Race Officials

Something went wrong with the feed yesterday. Somehow my post about the Seven boats at the Leeward mark got abbreviated and was not visible. My apologies to all feed- and mail subscribers.
Please visit http://rrsstudy.blogspot.com/2012/02/seven-at-leeward-mark-ltw-readers-q-60.html
if you want to have a look. The discussion in the comments is really heating up, and I could use some help :-)

As I'm preparing two presentations, I do not have much time today to write a post.
I looked to my 'draft' folder and came across an old post which somehow never got posted.
Published by the RYA in 2007:

CODE OF CONDUCT
RYA race officials (race officers, judges and umpires) are among the most exposed officials of the sport. It is therefore essential that they behave with the highest degree of competence, propriety and integrity. At no time can or should a race official do anything to bring the sport into disrepute.
Specifically, RYA race officials are expected to:

• Maintain a good level of understanding and application of the racing rules, cases, procedures and RYA policies.
• Ensure that decisions are based upon the rules and principles of fairness and objectivity and are made with care without prejudice.
• Uphold the confidentiality of jury deliberations during and after the regatta.
• Be polite, open-minded and patient, and deal with dissent in a fair and courteous manner.
• Declare any conflict of interest before accepting a race official invitation or when one becomes apparent at an event (a conflict of interest exists when an RYA race official has, or reasonably appears to have, a personal or financial interest which could affect the official’s ability to be impartial).
• Plan to arrive at an event on time and remain until relevant issues are resolved.
• Incur only expenses that are necessary and when expenses are reimbursed claim only legitimate and essential out-of-pocket costs.
• Be on time and wear appropriate clothing on the water and ashore.
• Abstain from consuming alcohol until duties are over for the day. Race officials must never become inappropriately inebriated during an event.

I was wondering if your MNA has ever written anything similar? Do you have a guideline?
If so please send me a copy (rrs-study at home dot nl), so that we can compare.

Code of Conduct for IRO; The use of Social Media

On the ISAF website a couple of minutes of the annual conference were published in which I was particularly interested. I wrote about this already on Tuesday, 4 October 2011 in post ISAF November Conference 2011. On the agenda was a subject which has a direct influence on my ability to blog in conjunction with being an International Race Official.

Of the four subcommittees dealing with Race Officials - Race Officers, Judges, Umpires an Measurers - only two discussed the use of social media by IROs;

In the Minutes for the INTERNATIONAL UMPIRES SUB-COMMITTEE meeting on 05 November 2011 at the ISAF PUERTO RICO CONFERENCE this was noted:

(c) Code for the Use of Social Media
The development of a set of guidelines for the use of social media by international umpires during and outside events was discussed. Draft proposal made by Jan Stage will be presented to ROC with recommendation that ROC appoints a working party to develop guidelines of use of social media. Should ROC appoint a working party to work on this, Alfredo Ricci will represent the IUSC.

And in the Minutes for the INTERNATIONAL JUDGES SUB-COMMITTEE meeting on 06 November 2011 at the ISAF PUERTO RICO CONFERENCE the following was published:

(e) Charley Cook requested the development of a guideline for officials on blogging and using social media, balancing freedom of speech with personal interest and confidential information. A working party will prepare a draft for all ISAF race officials. 

The other two sub committees did not discuss this subject, or at least there's no mention of it in their minutes.

The Race Official Committee - under which these four subcommittees reside - has not yet published its minutes, so I don't know if this subject was discussed there.


I hope it was on their agenda, but fear that, if the same outcome as in the subcommittees was reached, only a working party was appointed. And you know what happens if it goes to a sub-sub committee working party. It will take six hundred years to get out again....


I've been working with a set of guidelines that were written by the chairman of a Grade 1 event, I went to last year, to have a little backing. But sometimes the line what to write and what not, is very blurry.

I hope this working party will at least publish something for this coming season, but fear it will take another year at least.
The guidelines that should come out, are not meant only for bloggers like me, but also for all International Race Officials who use Facebook, LinkIn, Twitter and all those other Social Media we have now. And according to my Facebook page - a lot of IRO already use them in abundance...


To all of them, I say: Next time you speak to your MNA's representative to ISAF, ask how things are progressing with these guidelines?

J.