SECTION VII - RACE WALKING EVENTS
RULE 230
Race Walking
1. Race Walking is a progression of steps so taken that the walker makes
contact
with the ground, so that no visible (to the human eye) loss of
contact
occurs. The advancing leg shall be straightened (i.e. not bent
at
the knee) from the moment of first contact with the ground until the
vertical
upright position.
Judging
2. (a) The appointed judges of Race Walking
shall elect a Chief Judge,
if
one has not been appointed previously.
(b) All the Judges shall act in an individual capacity and their
judgements shall be based on observations made by the human
eye.
(c) In competitions held under Rule 1.1(a), all Judges shall be
International Race Walking Judges. In competitions held under
Rules 1.1(b), (c), (e), (f), (g) and (j), all Judges shall be either
Area or International Race Walking
Judges.
(d) For road races, there should normally be a minimum of six to a
maximum
of nine Judges including the Chief Judge.
(e) For track races, there should normally be six Judges including
the
Chief Judge.
(f) In competitions held under Rule 1.1(a) not more than one Judge
from
any Country can officiate.
Chief Judge
3. (a) In competitions held under Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c), (d) and (f),
the
Chief Judge has the power to disqualify an athlete inside the
stadium
when the race finishes in the stadium or in the last 100m
when
the race takes place solely on the track or on the road
course,
when his mode of progression obviously fails to comply
with
the Rule 230.1 regardless of the number of previous Red
Cards the Chief Judge has received on that athlete. An athlete
who
is disqualified by the Chief Judge under these
circumstances shall be allowed to finish the race. He shall be
notified
of this disqualification by the Chief Judge or a Chief
Judge’s Assistant by showing the athlete a red paddle at the
earliest
opportunity after the athlete has finished the race.
(b) The Chief Judge shall act as the supervising official for the
competition, and act as a Judge only in the special situation
noted
in Rule 230.3(a) in competitions under Rules 1.1(a), (b),
(c), (d) and (f). In competitions held under Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c)
and
(f), two or more Chief Judge’s Assistants shall be appointed.
The Chief Judge’s Assistant(s) are to assist with the notification
of
disqualifications only and shall not act as Race Walking
Judges.
(c) For all competitions held under Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c) and (f), an
official
in charge of the Posting Board(s) and a Chief Judge’s
Recorder shall be appointed.
Caution
4. Athletes shall be cautioned when, by their mode of progression, they
are
in danger of failing to comply with Rule 230.1 by showing the
athletes
a yellow paddle with the symbol of the offence on each side.
An athlete cannot be given a second caution by the same Judge for the
same
offence. Having cautioned an athlete, the Judge shall inform
the
Chief Judge of his action after the competition.
Red Cards
5. When a Judge observes an athlete failing to comply with Rule 230.1
by
exhibiting visible loss of contact or a bent knee during any part of
the
competition, the Judge shall send a Red Card to the Chief Judge.
Disqualification
6. (a) When three Red Cards from three
different Judges have been
sent
to the Chief Judge on the same athlete, the athlete is
disqualified and he shall be notified of this disqualification by
the
Chief Judge or a Chief Judge’s Assistant by showing the
athlete
a red paddle. The failure to give notification shall not
result
in the reinstatement of a disqualified athlete.
(b) In all competitions, either directly controlled by the IAAF or
taking
place under IAAF permit, in no circumstances shall the
Red Cards of two Judges of the same nationality have the power
to
disqualify.
(c) In track races, an athlete who is disqualified shall immediately
leave
the track and, in road races, shall, immediately after being
disqualified, remove the distinguishing bibs and leave the
course.
Any disqualified athlete who fails to leave the course or
track
may be liable to further disciplinary action in accordance
with
Rules 60.4(f) and 145.2.
(d) One or more Posting Boards shall be placed on the course and
near
the finish to keep athletes informed about the number of
Red Cards that have been sent to the Chief Judge for each
athlete.
The symbol of each offence should also be indicated on
the
Posting Board.
(e) For all Rule 1.1(a) competitions, hand held computer devices
with
transmission capability must be used by the judges to
communicate all Red Cards to the Recorder and the Posting
Board(s).
In all other competitions, in which such a system is not
used,
the Chief Judge, immediately after the end of the event,
shall
report to the Referee the identification of all athletes
disqualified under Rule 230.3(a) or 230.6(a), by indicating the
bib
identification, the time of the notification and the offences;
the
same shall be done for all the athletes who received red
cards.
The Start
7. The races shall be started by the firing of a gun. The commands and
procedure
for races longer than 400m shall be used (Rule 162.3). In
races
which include a large number of athletes, five-minute, threeminute
and
one-minute warnings before the start of the race should
be
given.
Safety and Medical
8. (a) The Organising Committee of Race Walking
events shall ensure
the
safety of athletes and officials. In competitions held under
Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c) and (f), the Organising Committee shall
ensure
that the roads used for the competition are closed to
motorised
traffic in all directions.
(b) In competitions held under Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c) and (f), the
events
shall be scheduled to start and finish in daylight.
(c) A hands-on medical examination during the progress of an event
by
the official medical staff appointed by the Organising
Committee and identified by armbands, vests or similar
distinctive apparel shall not be considered assistance.
(d) An athlete shall retire at once from the race if ordered to do so
by
the Medical Delegate or a member of the official medical
staff.
Drinking / Sponging and Refreshment Stations
9. (a) Water and other suitable refreshments
shall be available at the
start
and finish of all races.
(b) For all events up to and including 10km, water only drinking /
sponging
stations shall be provided at suitable intervals if
weather
conditions warrant such provision.
Note: Mist stations may also be arranged, when considered
appropriate under certain organisational and/or climatic
conditions.
(c) For all events longer than 10km, refreshment stations shall be
provided
every lap. In addition, water only drinking / sponging
stations
shall be placed approximately midway between the
refreshment stations or more frequently if weather conditions
warrant
such provision.
(d) Refreshments, which may be provided by either the Organising
Committee or the athlete, shall be placed at the stations so that
they
are easily accessible to, or may be put by authorised
persons
into the hands of, the athletes.
(e) An athlete who collects refreshment from a place other than the
refreshment stations renders himself liable to disqualification
by
the Referee.
(f) In competitions held under Rules 1.1(a), (b), (c) and (f), a
maximum
of two officials per Country may be stationed behind
the
refreshment table at any one time. No official shall, under
any
circumstances, run beside an athlete while he is taking
refreshment.
Road Courses
10. (a) For competitions held under Rule
1.1(a), the circuit shall be no
shorter
than 2km and no longer than 2.5km. For all other
competitions, the circuit shall be no shorter than
longer
than
stadium,
the circuit should be located as close as possible to the
stadium.
(b) Road courses shall be measured in accordance with Rule 240.3.
Race Conduct
with
the permission and under the supervision of an official, provided
that
by going off course he does not lessen the distance to be covered.
12. If the Referee is satisfied on the report of a Judge or Umpire or
otherwise
that an athlete has left the marked course thereby
shortening the distance to be covered, he shall be disqualified.