USABADMINTON UMPIRING LEVELS
Overview:
Court Officials are an important resource who play a critical role in the development of the game. USA Badminton is committed to developing and maintaining the skills of its umpires, referees, and line judges in order that its members are served by top level court officials for its events in the United States. The coordination and management of court officials for USA Badminton is the responsibility of the Court Officials Advisory Group (COAG).
Court officials should be current and active USA Badminton members and represent USA Badminton when they are active in their officiating duties. Generally USA Badminton court officials would only officiate at sanctioned events. Court officials fill out an annual record of work form and submit this to the Chairperson of COAG to document that they are current and active.
Anyone interested in becoming a USA Badminton umpire should contact David Carton () or Chris Lawrence ().
Court Officials appointments and promotions are administered by COAG.The following is a non-exhaustive listing of attributes associated with each of USB’s four domestic umpiring grades.
Regional Level: To be certified as a Regional Level umpire, elements (a) – (g) must be satisfied:
a) Must have attended a Regional USAB Regional Umpire Clinic
b) Able to use the umpire’s scoresheet
c) Proficient at using basic umpire vocabulary
d) Familiarity with the Laws of Badminton and Recommendations to Technical Officials
e) Has passed the Regional Umpire Written Test
f) Has independently umpired satisfactorily, as judged by an existing umpire, a minimum of three complete matches, including at least one doubles match
g) Must be a current USAB member
- A Regional Level umpire is unlikely to, but may receive a funding appointment in a normal budget year
- A Regional Level umpire is very unlikely to receive a US Open appointment
National Level 1: To be considered for promotion to this level,elements (a) – (m) must be satisfied:
a) Must have been a Regional umpire for at least 12 months
b) Must have been actively involved and demonstrated commitment to the COAG program
c) Must be a current USAB member
d) Consistently accurate in using all umpire vocabulary
e) Demonstrates adequate voice projection and tone of voice
f) Demonstrates thorough knowledge of Laws of Badminton and Recommendations to Technical Officials
g) Able to identify and call all kinds of faults and lets during a match
h) Demonstrates control of court and surroundings
i) Able to identify and call obvious service faults during a match
j) Ability to umpire and service judge domestic tournament matches up to and including semi-finals of Adult Nationals, Junior Nationals, and JIT
k) Demonstrates basic team work and camaraderie within the Technical Officials team at an event
l) Must pass the National Umpire Written Test
m) Must pass a practical assessment as judged by at least one member of COAG
- A National Level 1 umpire is likely to receive a funding appointment in a normal budget year
- A National Level 1 umpire is unlikely to receive a US Open appointment
National Level 2: To be considered for promotion to this level, elements (a) – (j) must be satisfied:
a) Must have been a National Level 1 umpire for at least 12 months
b) Must have been actively involved and demonstrated commitment to the COAG program
c) Must be a current USAB member
d) Demonstrates good voice projection and tone of voice
e) Consistently applies correctly and appropriately all Laws of Badminton and Recommendations to Technical Officials during play
f) Demonstrates ability to maintain controlof court and surroundings at domestic tournaments in moderate pressure situations
g) Consistently able to correctly call all kinds of service faults during a match
h) Ability to umpire and service judge all domestic tournament matches up to and including finals of Adult Nationals, Junior Nationals, and JIT
i) Demonstrates good team work and camaraderie within the Technical Officials team at an event
j) Must pass a practical assessment as judged by at least two members of COAG
- A National Level 2 umpire will usually receive a funding appointment in a normal budget year
- A National Level 2 umpire may occasionally receive an invitation to umpire the Qualifying Rounds and early Main Rounds at the US Open
National Level 3: To be considered for promotion to this level, elements (a) – (k) must be satisfied:
a) Must have been a National Level 2 umpire for at least 12 months
b) Must have been actively involved and demonstrated commitment to the COAG program
c) Must be a current USAB member
d) Demonstrates very good voice projection and tone of voice
e) Demonstrates ability to remain calm and maintain control of court and surroundings atdomestic tournaments in high pressure situations
f) Exudes an appropriate degree of self-confidence and authority while umpiring
g) Demonstrates ability to umpire international (non-US) players
h) Ability to umpire and service judge matches up to and including the Round of 16 at the US Open
i) Demonstrates sufficient ability to be appointed to Canadian Open and Canadian Level 4 BWF events
j) Demonstrates excellent team work and camaraderie within the Technical Officials team at an event
k) Must pass a practical assessment as judged by at least three members of COAG (normally at US Open)
- A National Level 3 umpire can expect to receive a domestic funding appointment in a normal budget year, and may be appointed to BWF events in Canada
- A National Level 3 umpire may receive an invitation to umpire at the US Open
Pan-American Accredited Level: Recommendations of National Level 3 umpires for assessment by PABCto this umpiring levelare made by COAG based on the non-exhaustive set of criteria in (a) to (i):
a) Must have been a National Level 3 umpire for at least 12 months
b) Must have been actively involved and demonstrated commitment to the COAG program
c) Must be a current USAB member
d) Demonstrates excellent voice projection and tone of voice
e) Demonstrates ability to remain calm and maintain control of court and surroundings while umpiring international players in high pressure situations
f) Exudes an appropriate degree of self-confidence and authority while umpiring, and able to retain the respect and trust of players in potentially contentious situations
g) Ability to umpire and service judge matches up to and including Quarter Finals of the US Open
h) Demonstrates sufficient ability to be appointed to USAB-European exchange BWF Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold level tournaments
i) Demonstrates excellent team work and camaraderie within the Technical Officials team at an event
- A Pan-American Accredited Level umpire can usually expect on average to receive an invitation to be a full-time umpire at the US Open every two to three years
- A Pan-American Accredited Level umpire may receive an invitation to umpire at Pan-American events,and at USAB-European Exchange BWF tournaments
Miscellaneous:
-In order to remain on the list of active umpires, an umpire must:
a) Umpire a minimum of 20 matches during a calendar year (starting with the first full calendar year after first becoming a Regional Level umpire)
b) Mail the “Record Of Work” form for the year just completed to the Chairman of COAG by January 15 of the following year
c) Maintain a current USAB membership
d) Not be in violation of the Court Officials Code Of Conduct
-An umpire should contact a member of COAG if he/she wishes to be considered for promotion to the next umpiring level. If the consensus of COAG is that an assessment is appropriate based on the umpire’s current performance and record of work, then an appropriate tournament will be identified for the assessment to be carried out.