Guidelines for a Competition

General

1. The rules, judging criteria, and scoring system will be publicized in writing well in advance of the
competition. They will also be available in writing at the competition.
2. Every effort must be made to assure that the judges are impartial. Ideally, the judges will be
people who do not know any of the contestants personally. Also, no member of any club should judge a competition in which fellow club members compete.
3. Consideration will be given to the method for selection of judges. It should be done in a way that
minimizes the possibility of partiality. “celebrity” judges add to the fun of the event. “Celebrities” can include minor celebrities, such as the local kid who got a perfect score on the SAT or the mayor of the town where the competition takes place.
4. At the beginning of the competition, the emcee or the organizer will explain the scoring system to
the contestants and to the public. The organizer will also read the judging criteria to the judges and to the public, verbatim as they appear in writing.
5. Also at the beginning of the competition, the judges will take an oath to be impartial, which they should do publicly on stage. the judges will affirm in public and onstage that they are not acquainted with any of the contestants.
6. The judges will be given no instructions about judging except to apply the official judging
criteria.
7. All of the judges’ scores as well as the calculations that led to the results will be available to the
public and to the press as soon as possible after the conclusion of the event.
8. The organizer will keep the judges score sheets after the competition and make copies available
to anyone who wants them.

Rules:

1. Each competitor will specify the category in which he or she wishes to compete when he
registers.
2. Before the competition begins, the organizers may transfer the competitor to another
category at the organizers’ discretion.
3. All decisions of the judges and organizers are final.

4.  Discourteous, abusive, or unprofessional behavior by a contestant may lead to disqualification at  the organizers’ discretion.