Track and Field

The outdoor track and field season is underway. Several states have had questions regarding the legality of a “five-finger shoe,” printing on arm warmers and pole ratings on older models of Altius poles. The following interpretations are provided for your assistance should you need to respond to any of the above listed items.

1. Five-finger shoes: This shoe is non-traditional but is becoming popular for distance runners. It is a product which has a sole, a fitting for each toe, a soft upper, no laces, but for most models a strap which goes over the top of the foot to fasten the shoe. Under NFHS Track and Field Rule 4-3-1, this shoe style is legal. These shoes must be designed to be securely fastened to the foot. This shoe is legal if all requirements in 4-3-1 are met, unless restricted by state association policy. The following link will take you to a site to view some five-finger shoes. http://www.google.com/products?q=five+finger+shoes&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla
2. Arm warmers displaying a school name and/or manufacturer’s name: Arm warmers are not considered a part of the official school uniform. Likewise, these items are not considered a visible undergarment. Therefore, there is no restriction on color, size or placement of a school name or mascot. There is no restriction on a manufacturer’s name/logo/trademark or reference in regard to size or placement on these items. These items are legal with no restrictions on logo/printing size and location unless restricted by state association policy.
3. Altius poles: Older models of Altius poles did not display the weight rating for the pole in the form of a label, but rather through an engraving of the ¾ inch size, proper location and appeared in contrasting color according to Rule 7-5-3. As these poles have been used in practice and competition, some have lost the contrasting color of the weight rating. No pole by any manufacturer is “grandfathered” to not meet all requirements in Rule 7-5-3. It is the responsibility of the manufacturer and school to address the official process of the manufacturer to validate the replacement of the weight rating should it become worn and no longer visible in a contrasting color, as required by rule.

The Track and Field Rules Clinic will be on-line from February 1 to February 22, 2010. Track and Field coaches must complete the clinic within this time frame in order to receive clinic credit.

The Wheelchair Track Clinic will be on-line from February 17 to March 14, 2010. Coaches from schools with wheelchair track participants must complete this clinic.

• Clinic Schedule for Spring Sports

  Baseball	January 11 - February 10, 2010
  Lacrosse	January 19 - February 8, 2010
  Soccer	January 8 - February 5, 2010
  Track and Field	February 1 - 22, 2010
  Wheelchair Track	February 17 - March 14, 2010

• Coaches and Officials - In order to receive clinic credit in a particular sport, you must complete the clinic for that sport by the date listed. For credit to be recorded, you must watch the entire presentation and fill out an attendence form that will be presented at the end of the presentation. However, after the clinic deadline has passed, the attendance form will no longer appear.

• If you are having trouble viewing the clinic presentations, try these troubleshooting tips.

• We have had many clinic confirmation emails bounce back to us due to incorrect email addresses or spam filters. There are also some email providers that are routing certain emails from our email server to Spam folders. If you did not receive a confirmation email, please check your Spam folder. You can also send an email to clinics@ghsa.net and we will resend the confirmation or route it to another address.

• Please retain your confirmation email as this is your proof that you completed the clinic.

• The following online rules clinics are available - click on the clinic title to start the presentation.

Clinic Title	Clinic Credit Available Until
2009 GHSA Softball Rules Clinic for Coaches	08/07/2009
2009 GHSA Softball Rules Clinic for Umpires	08/07/2009
2010 GHSA Baseball Rules Clinic for Coaches and Officials	02/10/2010
2010 GHSA Boys Lacrosse Rules Clinic for Coaches and Officials	02/08/2010
2010 GHSA Girls Lacrosse Rules Clinic for Coaches and Officials	02/08/2010
2010 GHSA Soccer Rules Clinic for Coaches and Officials	02/05/2010
2010 GHSA Track and Field Rules Clinic for Coaches	02/22/2010
2010 GHSA/AAASP Wheelchair Track Clinic for Coaches	04/30/2010

Click on the link below for a list of schools that are approved for pole vault.

Track and Field Rules and Procedures extracted from the GHSA Constitution and By-Laws for 2009-2010.