Introduction to Becoming an Official
- Overview of the process to become a wrestling official.
- Benefits of becoming an official (e.g., community involvement, personal development, potential earnings).
- You will build amazing friendships and camaraderie with your fellow officials.
- Depending on how much you work you can make 7,8,10K a season, more if you want to work national events.
- Build confidence in yourself and how to deal with adversity in a positive way, and actually grow a thick skin.
- Required registrations with relevant organizations (e.g., USA Wrestling, KSHSAA).
- KSHSAA (Opens early June every year)
- Now done through ArbiterSports each year. The link may change but you’ll be notified if you aren’t new.
- Gets you current Rules Book, Case Book, secondary insurance, on the officials directory.
- Is REQUIRED if you want to work middle school and high school events.
- Cost is $60 for one sport.
- Required to attend rules meeting in-person or online.
- Must pass 50 question open-book test.
- USA Wrestling (Opens usually last weekend in August – changes each year)
- www.usawmembership.com
- You will create a profile if you don’t already have one (Athletes should already have one)
- You will add either a Volunteer profile or a Leader profile. Volunteer has no additional cost to it, while Leader does but comes with yet another secondary insurance.
- Then you will need to purchase a Membership, again selecting Volunteer or Leader.
- Full SafeSport course is required for 1st year registration, then refresher the next 2 years, then full course again.
- Background Check – This is mandatory every 2 years for officials, there is a cost to this.
- Link here for full video walkthroughs
- Getting Assignments!
- How to make contact with club directors, assignors, athletic directors, other officials. All this falls under the “networking” umbrella.
- What you agree to is a contract and if you agree to it you MUST show up. Your word and integrity is all you have to go off of, and if you get a reputation for no-showing your career will be over.
- Working a rotation
- What to do and what NOT to do when you are working an event with other officials.
Officials' Uniforms and Requirements
- Detailed look at the official uniform and equipment. (Demo gear)
- Guidelines and standards for appearance and presentation.
- Short-sleeved knit shirt, with alternating black and white 1-inch stripes; or gray with black pinstripes, or an event provided shirt common to all referees at that event
- Full-length black trousers, black belt (if trousers have belt loops), black socks and black wrestling/gym shoes. Shoes with white or gray trim are allowed.
- The referee shall be neatly attired and have other accessories, including a colored disk, a black lanyard and black whistle, red and green armbands, and a kit to conduct the random draw. The red armband shall be worn on the left wrist and the green armband on the right wrist.
- This is SUPER important. You may not think so, but how you look is how you will be perceived. If you look like a slob then coaches aren’t going to take you seriously or respect the calls you make.
Rules and Regulations
- Presentation on the rule basics plus changes for upcoming season.
- Takedowns
- Escapes
- Reversals
- Near-Fall
- Falls
- Potentially Dangerous
- Technical Violations
- Illegal Moves
- Unsportsmanlike Conduct / Flagrant Misconduct
- STALLING
- Out Of Bounds
- Blood Time / Injury Time / Head, Neck, and Cervical / Referee’s Time (New)
- Discussion of interpretations and implications for officiating.
- We will go over each of these in the practical portion of the clinic in the afternoon in detail
Special discussion about procedures involving potential ejections within both sports organizations.
Signal and Communication Skills
- Proper signaling, whistling, and verbal communication.
- You may only use APPROVED signals when you are officiating and you should NEVER use ones that aren’t just because you see someone else doing them.
- Get in the habit of doing it right when you first start and then you won’t ever have to worry about doing it wrong.
- Be assertive with your signals and show confidence in them. Hold them up long enough so that everyone, especially your scorekeeper and table can see them. Always face the table when signaling whenever possible.
- Use clear and concise whistles! Be sharp with the whistle and when necessary be louder and use a different cadence. There are times in multiple-mat events where you may need to actually physically make contact with the wrestlers to get them to stop action.
- Always a good idea to be verbal in most calls that you are making out on the mat, this includes verbalizing scoring, stoppages of actions and commands to competitors.
- Preventative officiating is almost always preferable to having to penalize wrestlers.
- Do NOT coach the wrestlers.
- Practice sessions with peer feedback.
Mechanics and Positioning
- Instruction on proper positioning during matches.
- Always make eye contact with your table.
- Starting the wrestlers in neutral in the center – Get between them and prevent injuries and false starts.
- Keep your distance from the wrestlers! Can’t stress this enough!
- When action moves towards the edge of the mat, be there first so you can make the appropriate call and get the best angle for OOB scenarios.
- In near-fall situations stay back or you WILL get kicked. Do not EVER use your hands to “feel” for a fall. If you cant see it where you are, move around to the other side.
- Don’t be afraid to blow the action dead if you sense a dangerous situation developing even if the wrestlers are still in bounds
- Special discussion here about the challenges of Kids Federation events and abutting mats.
- Live demonstrations and analysis.
Conflict Resolution and Sportsmanship
- Strategies for managing conflicts and building rapport with coaches.
- Be cordial with coaches! You don’t have to be and should not be overly friendly with them as it creates a perception you don’t want people to have.
- What to do when a coach comes to the table requesting a conference.
- What to do when a coach is going beyond what is acceptable verbally with you.
- Don’t be afraid to admit when you’ve made a mistake and learn from it. A coach will respect you way more if you admit you messed up and own it then if you just try to hide behind it.
- Promoting sportsmanship among athletes and coaches
- While it is the coaches job to teach sportsmanship, it is YOUR responsibility to enforce it. “What you permit, you promote” is the premise.
Live Practice Matches
- Officiating live practice matches.
- Attendees will get the chance to actually blow their whistles and work simulated “live” matches with demonstrators
- Immediate feedback from clinician.
Closing Remarks and Q&A
- Summary of the day.
- Open floor for questions from attendees.
- Final remarks and acknowledgments.
