Regional Team Initiative
Go Here for List of 2010 Regional Team Members
2010 Regional Teams
a program of the Whitewater Slalom Foundation
Summary of Regional Teams Criteria
Athletes who have raced in three regional spring races before June 15th, and who are ranked in the top two in their age-group and event, are eligible to be named to their Regional team. Those athletes who go on to race in the 2010 Junior Olympics, Age-Group Nationals, or overseas, and whose region supplies matching funds, will each be awarded $200 to offset travel or other expenses; their coaches will each receive $100. Note that, unlike like year, the same criteria and awards will apply to all three age groups.
Report on 2009 Regional Team Initiative
In response to suggestions from U.S. Team coach Silvan Poberaj, the Whitewater Slalom Foundation established a Regional Teams Initiative in the spring of 2009. Awards were offered to offset travel and other expenses for cadet, sixteen-and-under, and Junior racers who qualified as Regional Team members according to WSF guidelines and went on to race in designated races over the summer. Matching funds were provided by each region to bring the awards to $200 to each Junior and U17 racer, $100 to their coaches or chaperones, and $100 for each cadet.
In this first year the following five regions responded by naming Regional Teams: Mid-Atlantic, Northeast, Southern Midwest, Northern Mid-Continental, and Southwest. Three regions did not name a Regional Team. In all, 20 young racers and 10 coaches were awarded a total of $6000 to offset travel expenses to the Junior Olympic festival in Canada, or to the age-group nationals, or, in the case of cadets, for equipment expenses. The number of entries in the races of participating regions, as well as attendance at the designated summer events, increased. The WSF regards the 2009 Regional Team initiative as a notable success, and we look forward to an even more successful 2010 program, which will be run along similar guidelines.
Rules for 2010 Regional Teams
Although the selection of the regional teams will be left up to each region, the Whitewater Slalom Foundation (WSF) will limit its awards according to the following criteria:
1. Awards will only be given to athletes who have completed three (3) spring races by June 15, which races will be used to rank the athletes according to the rules of the regional racing series, or other rules that the region may set forth. The athlete must finish each race counted toward this total. (I.e., those receiving DNF's on both runs will not count as having attended that race.) Regional teams should be announced and submitted to the WSF by June 17.
2. Awards will be limited to two boats per class in each of the three age categories: Junior, 16-and-under, and cadet. Racers will be eligible only in their appropriate age category. Awards will be made only in the following classes: K-1M, C-1M, C-2 (one class, may be either men, women, or mixed), K-1W, C-1W.
3. Money will only be awarded only to athletes who have gone on to race in the Junior Olympics, Age-group nationals, or overseas. The awards will be made after the designated competitions are completed, and evidence of athlete and coach attendance is received.
4. Each athlete may receive only one monetary reward.
5. The WSF will not apply a regional residence requirement. As far as the WSF is concerned, for example, a Pennsylvania athlete may be named to the Northeast team. Regions may, however, have their own requirements.
6. Recipients of awards must be USACK members.
7. Awards will only be made after the WSF has received the matching funds from the appropriate region.
8. An athlete’s eligibility for selection to a particular team category is determined by the athlete’s “competition age” (age on December 31 of 2010). Junior's "competition age" must be 18 or younger; 16-and-under for that team; and 14 and under for the cadet team.
9. The total award (including matching funds) will be $200 to the athlete, and $100 to the athlete's coach.
10. In order to receive WSF funds, coaches must be approved by their region.
11. In addition to the criteria above, it is recommended, though not a WSF requirement, that the regions employ the following percentage cut-off. Percentages are all calculated off the single best result among the youth classes. Junior and Junior 16: K-1M 150%; C-1M 160%; C-2 170%; K-1W 170%; C-1W 180%. Cadet: K-1M 175%; C-1M 185%; C-2 195%; K-1W 195%; C-1W 205%. Regions may choose to use other percentages.
12. Regions should send their matching funds directly into the WSF account. (Whitewater Slalom Foundation, P.O. Box 671, Lakeville CT 06039). Checks should be made payable to "WSF," with the purpose (e.g. "Northeast Regional Team") in the memo line. The WSF will keep track of the funds raised, by region, and then disburse the funds, once all criteria are met, along with the WSF contribution, directly to the athletes and coaches.
Regions
For the purposes of the Regional Teams program the regions are designated as follows. Although the initial basis for the regions was the USAWS divisions, some regions were divided to reflect the realities of volunteer activity, and to help reduce young racers' travel time.
1. Northeast: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and Connecticut.
2. Mid‐Atlantic: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, District of Columbia, West Virginia, Virginia, and Delaware.
3. South‐Atlantic: Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida.
4. Northwest: Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Alaska.
5. Southwest: Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico.
6. Western: California, Nevada, and Hawaii.
7. Northern Mid‐Continental: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota.
8. Southern Midwest: Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Kansas.