Long Island Swimming Officials Association
Serving Long Island Swimmers for over 60 years!
August 2020
|
|
Let's see how this goes ...
The following is an excerpt from the welcome, at the 2020 National Association of Sports Officials, Sports Officiating "Summit@Home" convention.
The remarks are by Auburn native and Cortland College graduate, Gary Sankey. Gary has been the SEC Commissioner (Southeastern Conference) since 2015.
"...when I meet with our SEC officials I ask them if they still have that fire burning, that passion to be part of something special - of sport competition - of supporting the impartiality in officiating, that we all desire. Of working diligently to understand the rules, the interpretation, the mechanics that apply to their work. So that when they're in that moment , they're in the right position, with the right information, and able to make the right judgements. Fundamentally, impartiality is about walking in and seeing the challenge in front of you - not the uniforms , not the people - but the challenge, the challenge to adjudicate that competition in a fair way under the rules."
Thank you,
George Fleckenstein
president
|
|
NASSAU COUNTY POSTPONES HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS UNTIL 2021
Section VIII, the governing body for Nassau County’s school sports is first of the state’s 11 sections to announce a postponement. When they do start-up in January they will play 9-week seasons.
"We’re going to run three sports seasons beginning in January,” said Pat Pizzarelli, executive director of Section VIII Athletics. “With Winter sports January and February, Fall sports March and April and Spring sports May and June.”
|
GOVERNOR ANNOUNCED LOWER-RISK SCHOOL SPORTS IN ALL REGIONS MAY BEGIN ON SEPT. 21
SWIMMING IS INCLUDED
AT THIS WRITING, SECTION XI - SUFFOLK COUNTY WILL BEGIN FALL PRACTICES ON SEPTEMBER 21 AND RUN A NORMAL SCHOOL-YEAR SPORTS SCHEDULE
No Travel Practice or Play Will Be Permitted Outside School’s Region or Contiguous Regions or Counties Until October 19
Governor Cuomo announced lower-risk, school-sponsored sports in all regions may begin to practice and play beginning September 21st. However, travel for practice or play will be prohibited outside of the school’s region or contiguous regions or counties until October 19th. For the fall sports season, lower- and moderate-risk sports include tennis, soccer, cross country, field hockey and swimming.
Higher-risk sports, including those with full physical contact, may begin to practice on September 21st but cannot play until a later date or December 31st. In accordance with the Department of Health’s guidance for sports and recreation during the COVID-19 public health emergency, practices for higher-risk sports are limited to individual or group, no- to low-contact training. Higher-risk sports include football, wrestling, rugby, hockey and volleyball.
“The State has done a lot of research on how we can safely have our students participate in school sports and get the exercise they need, and the guidance we developed will allow lower-risk sports to begin practicing and playing next month,” Governor Cuomo said. “We are approaching youth sports as we have approached everything else in our phased reopening – teams are not allowed to compete outside a school’s region or contiguous region for the time being until we can gauge the effects.”
Schools must follow the Department’s guidance for the conduct of their school sports. Schools will have to limit capacity of indoor facilities to no more than 50 percent occupancy and limit spectators to no more than two spectators per player, in addition to implementing social distancing and face coverings.
|
Dr. ROBERT ZAYAS FROM TWITTER:
"Here is the guidance from @HealthNYGov related to Interscholastic athletics starting on Sept. 21.
Certainly alot to comprehend. Section Executive Directors will meet to examine & discuss; COVID Task Force to meet early next week. "
|
Embracing Change is Crucial in Restarting High School Sports, Performing Arts
Dr. Karissa Niehoff, NFHS, August 2020
Planning high school sports and performing arts programs as the COVID-19 pandemic continues is the biggest challenge any of our leadership has ever faced. The classic line of “We’ve never done it that way before” has become “We must try to do it that way if activities are going to exist this year.” And if these plans are to be successful, we all must embrace change.
|
|
OUR 2020-21 RULES INTERPRETATION MEETING WILL BE POSTPONED UNTIL OCTOBER. MAYBE WE WILL KNOW MORE ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS AT THAT TIME.
|
TENTATIVE
LISOA Meeting Dates
Rules Interpretation Meeting - October 2020
Pre-Season Meeting -
Workshop -
Diving Clinic -
Relay Carnival, Sect. VIII - NCAC - clinic -
Nominating Meeting -Wednesday, January 6
Annual Meeting -Thursday, January 21
Recognition Dinner Meeting - March 15, 2021
|
Things Every Diving Judge Should Know... |
...The diving referee, or his/her designee, should check the diving score sheets for the following: (This is performed as a courtesy to the diver and his/her coach. The primary responsibility for accuracy of the diving score sheet lies with the diver and coach.)
• The diver’s name and school, diver and coach signatures, dive number and position, the order in which the dives will be performed, and that the designated degree of difficulty for the voluntary dive is circled (or listed first) and not greater than 1.8. Remember: the dive number and position are the official description of each dive. When electronic sheets are utilized, initials may be used as signatures;
• Verify that all divers have the correct Voluntary Dive Group for the week: Week #1 – forward group; week #2 – back group; week #3 – inward group; week #4 – twisting group; week #5 – reverse group; then start again with the forward group (unless determined otherwise by the state association);
• Verify that the five optional dives come from at least four of the five dive groups, and may include any dive from the voluntary dive group other than the voluntary dive, and;
• Be sure no dive is repeated on the score sheet.
|
NFHS SWIMMING AND DIVING EXAM WILL BE OPEN UNTIL SEPTEMBER 20
The window for the 2020-2021 NFHS Exam will close on Sunday, September 20th. To access the exam site CLICK HERE.
Please remember that you need to achieve at least an 85 in order to pass the exam and to be certified as an officials. If you do not pass please take the exam again as you can take the exam up to 99 times.
In the "SETTINGS", make sure that your Local Association is listed as "Long Island" if you are primary with our association!
For a hard copy of the exam click
|
2020-21 NFHS DIVING OFFICIALS’ GUIDELINES MANUAL
This manual is provided to improve the consistency of officiating high school diving and is designed to assist all officials in understanding their role in conducting competition.
While it should be especially useful for new and less experienced diving judges, it will also help the veteran judge hone the individual’s organizational skills along with the mechanics of officiating the event of one-meter diving.
|
Best Wishes to Jay Gallagher!
Jay retired as the Assistant Executive Director for Boy's Sports at the Nassau BOCES earlier this month. Working in the Section VIII Interscholastic Athletics Department, he assigned the officials for high school and middle school boys sports for over 25 years. Many of you met Jay when he attended our association meeting in January.
|
|
From Referee Magazine:
Confidence Comes from the Rules
Confidence is the key to success and optimum performance in any endeavor, but confidence is not a genetic mental thing as many think. Confidence is a very practical thing based on several factors, including competence, preparation, experience and knowledge of one’s core values.
Knowledge is power
Notice that smart people often have a lot of influence even when they don’t have a lot of authority. People listen to them and put a lot of stock in what they say. You’ll be respected by your peers and superiors if what you say and do reflects sound working knowledge of basic and complex rules especially.
Return on Time Invested
Gaining knowledge is the best use of your time, and its return will many-fold outpace any superficial changes you can make. The most successful people in the world find at least an hour to learn every day. So can you!
Make the Most of Your Preparation
You need to study the rule book itself, but a deep nuanced understanding will only come with some extra effort.
Confidence is the key to success
|
|
License Plate History: A Timeline
With some 270 million vehicles registered in the U.S., each one adorned with an alphanumeric metal panel, its easy for license plates to be overlooked – maybe even maligned for their connotation of trips to the DMV. But like other parts of the automobile’s past, there’s more to the history of license plates than what meets the eye. As unlikely as it may seem, these vehicle identifiers have been influenced by technology, culture and current events. Thus, they offer a unique window into our country’s past. Let’s take a look at the last 100-plus years of license plate history.
1901 – New York Requires Vehicles to Be Registered
On April 25, 1901, New York Governor Benjamin Odell Jr. signed a bill into law that required vehicle owners to register their cars with the state. As part of the registration process, the law dictated all automobiles have “the separate initials of the owner’s name placed upon the back thereof in a conspicuous place, the letters forming such initials to be at least three inches in height.”
There was one catch: New York State did not issue the plates; owners were expected to create them on their own. This meant there was no standardization and early plates varied widely in materials, style and color. Motorists commonly used metal, wood or leather. Some even painted letters directly onto the vehicle.
1903 – Massachusetts Issues First State License Plates
Massachusetts becomes the first state to issue license plates to drivers. These cobalt blue plates were made of iron and covered with porcelain enamel.
The very first plate featured just the number “1.” It was issued to Frederick Tudor, who worked for the highway commission. It remains an active registration by a member of his family.
1928 – Idaho Introduces License Plate Slogans
Nowadays it’s very common for state slogans or other phrases to adorn license plates. That all started when Idaho began stamping “Idaho Potatoes” on all its license plates back in the 1920s.
1931 – The First Vanity Plates
Pennsylvania becomes the first state to issue customized license plates, beginning what would grow into a popular trend. At the time, however, drivers could only add their initials to the plate. According to the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, there were 9.7 million vehicles with personalized vanity plates in North America in 2007.
1944 – A Supply Shortage
During World War II, a vast amount of the country’s metal supply was used to build war supplies. This led to a nationwide metal shortage and states were forced to use alternative materials for their license plates, including fiberboard, cardboard and even soybean-based plastic.
1957 – The Standard Size Is Set
Automobile manufacturers come to an agreement with international governments and standards organizations on the size of license plates. The standard plate size is set at 12 by 6 inches in the United States.
1971 – A New Material Arrives
1977 – License Plates Reach the Supreme Court
The land’s highest court gives their decision on the case of Wooley v. Maynard. Up until that point, the state of New Hampshire required all noncommercial vehicles to have license plates containing the state motto “Live Free or Die.” Resident George Maynard cut off the words “or Die,” believing they went against his religious beliefs. He was cited for violating the state law, fined, and after refusing to pay, jailed for 15 days.
Maynard sued and the case eventually made its way to the Supreme Court. In a 6-3 decision, the court ruled that New Hampshire could not require citizens to display the state motto, stating “New Hampshire’s statute in effect requires that appellees use their private property as a ‘mobile billboard’ for the State’s ideological message…The First Amendment protects the right of individuals to hold a point of view different from the majority, and to refuse to foster, in the way New Hampshire commands, an idea they find morally objectionable.”
License plates are not the only automobile accessory to make it to court. Bumper stickers have been there too.
2000 – America’s Most Expensive License Plate
A 1921 Alaska license plate is sold for $60,000. To date, it is the country’s most expensive license plate. Its high value is a product of its rarity as the plate is one of only four known to exist. Why so few? Alaska in the 1920s was not even a U.S. state at the time. It remained mostly undeveloped, with little infrastructure, including roads. Navigating its terrain in an automobile was nearly impossible, so very few people owned one. Fewer cars meant fewer license plates.
|
|
The primary role of the official is to ensure fair competition which is conducted in a positive, safe and healthy environment and that actions of the competitors, coaches and other team personnel are in compliance with the rules. |
|
The purpose and goals of the LISOA and its members shall be to:
Officiate all meets in a competent and professional manner.
Have its members actively work to improve interscholastic swimming and diving officiating.
Provide a consistent interpretation and administration of interscholastic swimming and diving rules.
Service and collaborate with the swimming and diving community for the improvement of swimming and diving.
|
|
President:
George Fleckenstein
Vice President:
Ray Willie
Secretary:
Chris Zimmet
Treasurer:
Barbara Wendt
|
|
Directors:
Doug Virkus
Larry Wachter
]
|
|
Rules Interpreter:
Bob Kersch
Past President:
Frank Dowd
|
|
OUR FOUNDING MEMBERS (1957)
Charlie Schlegal
George Columbo
Jim McAllister
Dick Atwater
Jack Reilly
Frank Krayer
|
|
NYSCSO Distinguished Service Award Members
Jim McAllister (2019)
Doug Virkus (2011)
Mush Masters (2008)
Pete Moeschen (2004)
Stan Adler (1993)
Bob Kersch (1990)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
