European AWI Rules

The official AWI European Championships will consist of the AWI Freestyle Division, AWI Toss & Catch Division, AWI Open Division (Freestyle and Toss & Catch).

Each AWI Qualifier in Europe consist of the AWI Freestyle Division, AWI Toss & Catch Division, AWI Open Division (Freestyle and Toss & Catch).
The local clubs running the qualifying events may run additional divisions at their discretion.

The AWI does not guarantee continuity of divisions at every competition.
Please contact the hosting club to see whether additional divisions will be offered, and check www.ashleywhippet.eu often for more updates as they become available. 

The top 5 finishers of each devision at the AWI Qualifiers in the EU will receive an invitation to the Ashley Whippet Invitational European Championships.
The winner of the previous year AWI European Championship is automatically invited back for the next year European Championship.
Competitors can enter with as many dogs as they want at one event.

Additionally, if a team that is already qualified for the AWI European Championship plays at another Open Qualifier and places in the top five, this invitation will slide down to the team finishing in sixth place, and so on.

The teams must register and pay for each division they want compete.
The times for registration opening and closing will be announced before the date of each event.
Please arrive on time, or you will not be allowed to register and compete.
NO LATE REGISTRATIONS ARE ALLOWED.
Once registration is closed, no more entries will be accepted.

All competitors must sign the injury/illness waiver and full publicity release.

No substitutions of either canine or thrower will be allowed at the Ashley Whippet Invitational once the injury/illness waiver has been signed.

AWI Open Toss and Cash only: 12€
AWI Open Freestyle only: 12€

AWI Open ( Freestyle and T/C ) Devision: 24€

What happens with the money?

From the entry fees of the AWI Open Devision class 12€ from each starter goes to the host. 12€ from each starter goes to the AWI.
From the entry fees of the AWI Open Freestyle only Devision 6€ from each starter goes to the host. 6€ from each starter goes to the AWI.
From the entry fees of the AWI OpenToss and Catch only Devision 6€ from each starter goes to the host. 6€ from each starter goes to the AWI.

The money that goes to the AWI is used for:
Buy give aways for the players bags, cover costs for running the EC (place, judges, players dinner, insurance, PA sytem and so on , for the qualified teams can compete for free ), covering costs for shipping stuff to the hosts.

Any physically sound dog may compete in the AWI World Championship Series, subject to the restrictions described below:

Due to the risk of injury because of underdeveloped anatomy, dogs must be at least one year old to be eligible to compete in the AWI World Championship Series Open Division. The AWI realizes that it is difficult to determine the age of some rescue dogs, and does not want to bar any dogs from competition. The AWI requests that handlers use their best judgment in entering dogs of uncertain age, not vault dogs under the age of eighteen months ( if so the AWI will disqualify the handler for lifetime from playing any AWI event), and above all BE SAFE.

Bitches in heat are allowed to play. Owners are advised to keep the their BIH away from the field if not playing and walk their BIH far from the competition area to relieve it, if possible.
All dogs must have current Rabies vaccinations. Vaccinations for Parvovirus and Kennel Cough are strongly recommended.

If, during the Freestyle routine or the Toss & Catch round, there is an unexpected interruption on the field, such as a loose dog, or debris on the field, time will stop at signal from the head judge, and the player will have one of three choices:

• Resume where they left off in the routine, once the field is cleared
• Start over right away after the field is cleared
• Re-do their routine after all remaining teams have finished that round of freestyle

Canine handlers are REQUIRED to clean up if their dog takes a nature break. In consideration of other competitors, and the health and welfare of all competing animals, all competitors must take their competing canine for a nature break before they are called to go on deck. If a nature break takes place while a dog is on the competition field, time will continue to run and the competitor must continue their routine. An appropriate amount of time will be allowed to clean the affected area after time has expired.

Disqualification will be at the sole discretion of the head judge. The following will be grounds for mandatory disqualification:
Abuse and endangerment of an animal
Dogs under one year of age used in competition

Dogs under 18 month of age used in freestyle competition with high jumps,vaults etc.
Overly aggressive canine behavior
Dogs who are found not to be current on rabies vaccinations

Boisterous challenges of contest officials, abusive language or other inappropriate or unsportsmanlike behavior could result in the competitor's disqualification from the event.

Competitors are responsible for the safety and welfare of their dogs at all Ashley Whippet® Invitational events. Competing canines should be properly supervised and must be under the care and control of their handler at all times. Failure to do so could result in the disqualification of that team.

Any other violations of these rules may result in disqualification at the discretion of the head judge.

Open Overall Division:

All teams will compete one round of Freestyle and one round of Toss & Catch.
These two scores will be added together and the field will be cut to the top 10 teams AFTER any ties have been broken.
(Second-round cuts are made at the discretion of the Tournament Director and may be greater than 10 if time and other considerations permit.)

These 10 teams from AWI Open Overall Division will then run one more round of Freestyle.

The open qualifiers may run differently with only one round of freestyle and one round of Toss & Catch, depending on time constraints and number of volunteers.
These changes can be made at the discretion of the hosting club, head judge, and/or tournament director, but will be announced before the event when possible, but can also be announced before a divisional round starts, if dangerous weather arrives.  

Open Freestyle Devision:

All teams will compete one round of Freestyle and the field will be cut to the top 10 teams AFTER any ties have been broken.
(Second-round cuts are made at the discretion of the Tournament Director and may be greater than 10 if time and other considerations permit.)

These 10 teams from AWI Open Freestyle Division will then run one more round of Freestyle.

Open T/C Division:

All teams will compete one round of T/C and the field will be cut to the top 10 teams AFTER any ties have been broken.
(Second-round cuts are made at the discretion of the Tournament Director and may be greater than 10 if time and other considerations permit.)

These 10 teams from AWI OpenT&C Division will then run one more round of T&C.

The Freestyle and Toss & Catch rules and scoring described herein will be used for the AWI European Championship.
The same scoring rules will be used at the Open Qualifiers where possible.
In the case of an AWI event piggybacking on another, the hosting club’s rules will take precedence.
Rules for any additional divisions run at the discretion of the hosting club will be determined by the hosting club.

For the Overall/Freestyle Divisions, the following scores from the FIRST round of freestyle will be used to break any ties in the order given below:

• Catch ratio
• Team score
• Dog score
• Human score
• Overall score

For the Toss and Catch  Divisions the following Tiebreakers rules will be used :

•  single highest round
•  fewest throws to accomplish highest round
•  One throw sudden death

The following discs are allowed for competition at all AWI competitions:

• All Hero Disc USA dog style models (includes size 235, 215 and the Atom 185)
• All Wham-O fastback models (includes Eurablend)
• All Hyperflite disc models (includes Jawz)
• All Dogstar disc models
• All mamadisc models
• Trixie (only Activity Dog Disc)
•  K9 disc HBR & SBD
• Wirbelwind Frisbees

Any dog friendly "pup" (smaller diameter) disc will be allowed. If a competitor chooses to use a smaller diameter disc for the freestyle round(s) the competitor may choose to use a larger disc to use for the Toss & Catch round. Any special disc requests to accommodate special needs dogs should be made to the AWI Tournament Director and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Any dog-friendly disc not mentioned on this list will be subject to the approval of the AWI Tournament Director or head judge at events with no AWI official around.

All participants should attend the players' meeting before the competition.
Only the competing canine, thrower, officials, and field staff are allowed on the field during competition.
No food or treats are allowed on the competition field at any time.
Teams may not bring items other than discs used for competition and their dogs onto the field of play.
Dogs may wear standard collars on the competition field for the purpose of leash attachment. No shock, pinch, or other types of training collars are permitted on the competition field.
Competitors must walk their canines on a leash to the on-deck area and when exiting the field of play. Canines must be KEPT ON A LEASH at all times, except when competing.
Any activity that could be considered distracting should be conducted out of range of the competition so competitors are not distracted.

DISCLAIMER: AT ALL LEVELS OF COMPETITION, OFFICIALS OF THE ASHLEY WHIPPET® INVITATIONAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES RESERVE THE RIGHT TO CHANGE FORMAT, COMPETITION RULES, TIME ALLOTMENTS, ETC., AT THEIR DISCRETION TO ACCOMMODATE THE NEEDS AND ENSURE THE OVERALL SUCCESS OF THE EVENT.

For ALL  AWI Qualifier T&C rounds, including the Championships,he Toss and Catch (Toss & Catch, T&C) rules will be as follows:

In the Toss & Catch round, competitors are given 60 seconds in which to complete as many throws as possible with one disc. The canine and the thrower must be behind the line before time starts. When the thrower indicates that he or she is ready, the line judge will signal to the announcer that the competitor is ready.
At this time, the announcer will count down, "3-2-1-GO," and will simultaneously start the clock with the word "GO".
Throwers must be behind the line for all throws, but they may move around the field freely between throws.

If the thrower steps on or across the throwing line at the time of the release of the disc, the throw will not be scored.

Countdown of time remaining will be given at 30 seconds, 10 seconds, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, and time.
Completions will be scored as long as the disc leaves the thrower's hand prior to or simultaneous with the call of time.

The competitor may only have one disc in his or her hand at any time during the Toss & Catch round, but may bring one additional disc to the throwing line, which must be handed to the line judge before the round begins.
If, during a round, the competitor believes the disc in use has become unsafe for the dog to catch because of a broken rim or a large tear, the disc may be handed to the line judge and exchanged for the second disc provided by the competitor.
The damaged disc must be handed to the line judge before a replacement is given, and time will not be suspended during a disc change.

1. Field Layout

The field will be 50 yards/ 45.5 meter in length, and players may choose to throw from either side. The field will be divided into five segments, with the first being 10 yards and all others being 10 yards,too. The width of the field will be 30 yards / 27.3 meter. Low profile cones will be placed 20 yards apart along the edge of the field. There will be no out-of-bounds along the sides or on the ends of the field.
*** A bonus  half circle measuring 4 yards in radius will be painted at each end of the field with the center of the half circle at the 40 yards line. 

The field is set up so that competitors have a choice to throw from either end of the field; however, the throwing direction cannot be changed once time has started. Competitors will enter and exit the field through the same gate, and should use whichever gate is closest to the throwing line the competitor wishes to throw from.

2. Point Zones
The field is measured in increments of yards from 0 to 50 yards, with scoring zones at 10, 20, 30 and 40 yards, and points are awarded for successful completions as follows:

0 - 10 yards / 0 - 9.1 meters = 0 points

10 - 20 yards / 9.1 - 18.2 meters = 0.5 point

20 - 30 yards / 18.2 - 27.3 meters = 1 point

30 - 40 yards / 27.3 - 36.4 meters = 1.5 points

40 - 50 yards / 36.4 - 45.5 meters = 2 points

0.5 Accuracy Bonus Point:
A dog's trailing paw or paws may be on the 40 yard line but all other paws must be beyond the 40 yard line with at least one paw completely inside or on any part of the line of the accuracy bonus half circle at the time the dog makes the catch or upon landing after a catch is made in the air.

Completions will be spotted in the zone where the trailing paw of the dog is located at the time of the catch.
If the dog is in the air at the time of the catch, the completion will be spotted where the trailing paw of the dog is located when the dog lands.
The trailing paw / paws , must be on or across  the line to score in the forward / higher zone .
If any part of the trailing paw is touching behind the scoring line, the catch will be scored in the lower scoring zone.

JUST IN THE USA:
While a team is doing their T&C rounds and land a throw in the Bonus Zone, they will get the 2.5 as the rules state.
After the first Bonus Zone (BZ) throw of 2.5, we want to add an extra.5 point for any BZ throw after that in each round.

Example:
A team gets up to throw,
Their 1st throw is for 2 pts
2nd throw , bonus zone = 2.5
3rd throw is missed by the dog = no points
4th throw is another bonus zone, = 3.0 pts.
5th throw is another bonus zone = 3.5 pts. = total of 11 points .
So you would get an extra .5 pts for every additional bonus throw you make in that one round . This will include all rounds thrown.

The freestyle round is a timed, freeform competition that is judged on a 40 point scale using the following four categories, as described below: Dog, Human, Team, and Overall. Catch ratio will also be tracked as described below, but will not form a part of the freestyle score and but may be used only as a tiebreaker. ( Appendix B printed for judges )

DOG
The Dog category scores the performance of the canine member of the team. Some of the elements used for deciding the dog's score are focus, prey drive, excitement, willingness to cooperate with the handler, speed, endurance, jumping ability (both aided, e.g., using the handler's body as a launch pad, and unaided), and body awareness displayed by control in the air and landing properly. The dog's ability to catch a disc while in a variety of positions, at varying distances, and in varying directions can also enhance the dog's score.

HUMAN
The Human category scores the performance of the human member of the team. Some of the elements used for deciding the human's score are athletic ability, coordination, smoothness of movement, ingenuity, innovation, creativity, and overall skill level. A variety of throws, disc control, and the difficulty level of the routine can also enhance the human's score.

TEAM
The Team category scores both the dog and the human in their performance as a team. Judges are looking primarily at the overall cohesiveness of the team and the communication between dog and handler. Some of the elements used for deciding the team score are the flow of the routine, disc management, field management, innovation, and creative and effective use of multiple discs for fast-paced throws requiring the dog to change direction, move quickly, and communicate with the handler. Chaining throws together with a succession of different tricks and moves involving the dog and the disc will also enhance the score. A routine should flow smoothly without long pauses between sequences to collect discs or for other purposes; however, brief pauses in flow to accommodate the setup for extremely difficult tricks may not negatively affect a team's score.

OVERALL
The Overall category is a catch-all category used to score the overall impression given by a routine and to take into account other factors that may not be adequately scored under the other categories. Some of the elements used for deciding the overall score include crowd appeal, energy level, excitement, "wow factor," showmanship, and effective showcasing of the abilities of the dog, the human, and the team. Interpretation of the music, artistic impression, and production may also enhance the score.

CATCH RATIO
The Catch Ratio is a mathematically determined number that is obtained by dividing the number of catches by the number of throws, multiplying by 10, and then rounding to the nearest tenth of a point. For example, (22 catches) / (30 throws) * 10 = 7.3333, or 7.3 by rounding to the nearest tenth of point.

Judges can be asked by a copmetitor, prior to their round, to write a few short notes or suggestions in regards to their round on a comment card, that must be provided by the competitor for the benefit of the competitor. Competitors may not request comment cards for other handler´s routines.

We also encourage new club members or competitors, interested in Freestyle judging, to request to sit behind the Freestyle judges, to hear the discussions during and after the rounds, to get a better understanding of what is being evaluated. However they should not interrupt the judges or the flow of the events otherwise they may be asked to leave if necessary.

The freestyle competition will be judged by a panel of four judges.
Three of the judges will each be responsible for judging one of the three subjective categories in the AWI Freestyle Scoring System: Dog, Human, and Team. Catch Ratio will be tracked by the fourth judge.
Each judge, excluding the catch ratio judge, will also give a score for the Overall category.
The high and low Overall scores will be dropped and the remaining score will be the final Overall category score.
Each category is scored on a scale from 1–10 in 0.1 (one tenth) point increments.
The Dog, Human, Team, and median Overall score will be added together to determine the team's final score for the freestyle round.

Catch ratio will not be added into the overall score, and will be used only as a tie breaker. Therefore, a very difficult routine with a lower catch ratio can potentially score higher than an easier routine with a very high catch ratio.

Only moves that begin with the disc in flight and end with a catch are scored. Takes—moves in which the disc is handed off to the dog—will not be scored. Rollers—throws that are intentionally rolled along the ground to the dog—will be scored, provided the dog makes a clean catch. Moves such as taps and double throws in which one or more discs are intentionally missed by the dog and caught by the thrower will be scored, provided they are cleanly executed.

The welfare of the dog is of paramount concern to the judges and sponsors. Therefore, vaulting a dog excessively high, or repeatedly, will not increase the likelihood of a higher score and may result in point deductions and/or disqualification.

Judges have the option of writing a few short notes or suggestions on comment cards for the benefit of the competitor.

Point deductions will be discussed as necessary by all judges at the end of the routine and only if all 3 judges are in agreement, deductions will be reflected in the score for the freestyle category  (Dog, Human, or Team), or in the Overall score, that the deduction should apply to.Judges hsould also make the competitor aware if any deductions were applied at their earliest convenience, but definitely before their next round of Freestyle , so adjustments can be made if necessary to prevent any further deductions.

The following actions may result in a lower score.
Contortion: when a canine twists its body to a degree which could lead to injury while jumping, catching or landing.
Buckle/Slam: an unstable landing during which a part of the canine's body other than the feet lands on the ground, except when a canine's face touches the ground due to chasing a low throw or similar situations.

Competitors starting their routines with more than 9 discs will receive a deduction of minus one point applied to the Human Category.

Players are performers. Your overall performance can and will be partially judged by how you conduct yourself once you enter and exit the field of competition. Conduct on the field before, during, or after a freestyle round which is perceived by a judge as inappropriate or unsportsmanlike may negatively affect your freestyle score.

The freestyle field will consist of an open area of at least 30 yards by 50 yards. It will have an entrance and exit area that MUST be used by all competitors during the competition.
The entry will be in the corner to the left of the judges, and the exit will be in the corner to the right of the judges.
A leash runner will make sure your leash is waiting at the exit gate. A tent for shade and water will be available at the entry gate.
Water will also be provided at the exit gate.
Each competitor is expected to report to the entry gate when they are "on deck" and the next competitor up.

Please do everything possible to ensure you are at the entry gate before the round ahead of you is done, to ensure the event flows smoothly.

Freestyle routines have a time limit of 120 seconds, or two minutes.
Time will start when the first disc is released in an obvious throwing manner.
Once time has begun, countdown of time remaining will be given at one minute, 30 seconds, 10 seconds, and time.
Each team must perform for at least 90 seconds after time begins for their round to be scored and counted.
Competitors are strongly encouraged to limit their pre-routines to less than 15 seconds.

A maximum of nine discs may be used during any freestyle routine. Competitors starting their routines with more than nine discs will receive a deduction of minus one point applied to the Human Category..

Competitors must bring their own music and should present it to the AWI sound system staff before the competition starts.
Competitors must mark their music clearly with their name and their dog's name and list the track number to be played.
Competitors are encouraged to avoid music that is not suited for a family audience.
Music must be presented as a CD or MP3 player. No cassette tapes will be allowed.

There are no clothing restrictions in the AWI freestyle competition, however, the use of a costume will not increase the likelihood of a higher score if it does not add to the overall entertainment value and crowd appeal of the freestyle routine. Competitors should be aware that use of a costume could actually result in a lower score if it hinders the successful execution of moves or disrupts the flow of the routine. Any costume that the head judge deems to pose a risk of injury to the dog will not be allowed during the competition. Canine costumes should be limited to bandanas or form-fitting coats, like Ashley himself used to wear. Any loose, flowing, or hanging costume on a dog that the head judge deems to pose a safety risk will not be allowed on the field.

The use of any type of prop—an item not worn on the body as clothing—is not permitted while the competing team is on the field. This rule applies regardless of whether the prop is used as part of a pre-routine (before time starts) or otherwise. If a competitor has a question regarding a costume or prop, it is highly recommended that the competitor consult with the judges in advance.