Committee   |   Members |   Statutes |   Bylaws|   Rules

 

These statutes and bylaws of the World Checkers and Draughts Federation (WCDF) are those as agreed at its inaugural meeting on 28th October 2003 (N. Ireland) and as amended at succeeding General Assembly meetings (e.g. Barbados 2004, USA 2005, Scotland 2006, and Ireland 2007, China 2008).

 

1           Chapter 1.                  Status, principles and aims of the World Checkers & Draughts Federation

1.1.              The World Checkers & Draughts Federation, hereafter referred to as WCDF, is the official world governing body for the game of Checkers. 

1.2.              Checkers is one of the most ancient, intellectual and cultural games. It is a combination of sport, of scientific thinking and of the elements of art.

1.3.              The purpose and aim of the WCDF are therefore;

1.3.1.         The diffusion and development of Checkers among all nations of the world.

1.3.2.         The unification of Checkers organisations throughout the world.

1.3.3.         The raising of the level of Checkers culture and knowledge on a sporting, scientific, creative and cultural basis.

1.3.4.         The standardisation of the rules of Checkers amongst all affiliated organisations.

1.3.5.         To oversee provisions pertaining to the organisation of world championship matches, world qualification events, and all other WCDF international Checkers competitions.

1.3.6.         To award international Checkers titles. 

1.3.7.         To support other international organisations with similar aims [e.g. Federation Mondiale Jeu de Dames {FMJD}] in the advancement of promoting Checkers towards Mind-Sport and Olympic recognition by the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF).

1.4.              The WCDF is concerned exclusively with Checkers activities. The WCDF is democratically established and bases itself on the principles of the rights of its members. It rejects discriminatory treatment for national, political, racial, social or religious reasons or on account of gender. It observes strict neutrality in the internal affairs of Checkers organisations.

1.5.              WCDF competitions are in general open to players of both sexes.  A competition described as a women's event is reserved for women players but women players are entitled to compete in events that are not specifically described as "women's" events.

1.6.              WCDF events (competitions, meetings, etc) may be hosted only by organisations in whose countries free access is generally assured to representatives of all nations.

  

2           Chapter 2.                  WCDF members, their rights and their duties

2.1                Members of the WCDF are Checkers organisations, which have authority over Checkers activities in their own area [2]. 

2.2                Before being admitted as a member of the WCDF an organisation must first acknowledge the WCDF Bylaws and agree only to develop activities that are not contrary to those Bylaws.

2.3                The admission of an organisation as a member is effected through an application.  This application must be submitted to the Executive Board and will be decided upon by the Executive Board within two months of its receipt. The application for admission must include sufficient data to make it evident that the statutory purpose and the previous activities of the applicant are in conformity with the WCDF Bylaws.

2.4                Applicants must complete their membership application through the payment of a membership fee, the cost of which is set by the General Assembly.  This fee is currently set at $100 (ml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />US) or equivalent per annum.

2.5                All member organisations shall appoint a representative person, to be known as a �delegate� to act as an intermediary between their organisation and the WCDF.

2.6                Membership confers the following rights;

2.6.1           Members are entitled to participate in all WCDF events in accordance with WCDF regulations.

2.6.2           Members have a seat and vote in the General Assembly.

2.6.3           Members are authorised to submit proposals to the WCDF through their �delegate�.

2.6.4           Members are authorised to scrutinise the official records relating to the management of the WCDF.

2.7                Members must acknowledge and observe the bylaws, regulations, resolutions, and decisions of the WCDF.  Moreover they are obliged to support the WCDF as actively as can reasonably be expected of them in its Checkers activities.

2.8                Each member is required to send to the Secretariat each year, not later than 31st March, a report containing at least the following information:

a)       The name, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number of the organisation;

b)       The name, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number of its President or functional head;

c)       The name, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number of the Secretary or main contact;

d)       The name, postal address, e-mail address and telephone number of the person / officer who is the intermediary between the member organisation and the WCDF (its �delegate�);

e)       The names of its national champions, if any;

f)        The title, postal address and e-mail address of its official bulletin, if any;

g)       The URL of its web site, if any;

h)       The date, place and other details about all events at Checkers which have been held in the organisation's area since the previous report or which are already planned or scheduled for the future.

i)         If in the course of the year changes occur in the data mentioned in this clause above, the organisation should inform the Executive Board as soon as possible.

2.9                Members have the right to withdraw from the WCDF at their sole discretion and at any time.  The President of the member body must inform the Executive Board in writing of the withdrawal. In the event of the exclusion or withdrawal of a member, neither membership fees nor other contributions will be refunded.

2.10            In the absence of a written request for withdrawal, the WCDF membership of each organisation will be reinstated each year automatically on the 1st January for the ensuing year, and the subscription fee for that year will be required to be paid.

2.11            Members not fulfilling their duties under these Bylaws may be sanctioned (Chapter 8) by the Executive Board (Chapter 3) until such time as the that member can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the General Assembly (Chapter 4) that such transgression has been rectified.

2.12            Membership of an organisation may be refused on the grounds of an incomplete application or where the functioning of such an organisation is in conflict with the statutes and bylaws of the WCDF (e.g. articles 1.4, 1.5, 2.4, etc). The reason for refusal of such an application will be given to the applicant in writing.

2.13            The official WCDF language is English. All communication between members and the Executive Board shall be in English unless otherwise agreed in writing between the communicating parties.  Parties requiring the use of other languages may do so, but at their own expense and direction.

2.14            The WCDF can be dissolved by a decision of the General Assembly, if at least two-thirds of all members express themselves to be in favour of dissolution.

  

3           Chapter 3.                  Executive Board.

3.1    The Executive Board shall be responsible for running the day-to-day activities of the WCDF. Examples of these activities may include;

                3.1.1       Processing applications for membership.

3.1.2      Overseeing the bidding process for the hosting of WCDF events.

3.1.3      The appointment of referees for official WCDF events.

                3.1.4       Making decisions on an application for postponement of a world title match.

3.1.5       Investigating all actions that may require the application of sanctions (Ch.8) against an individual person or member organisation for breaches of WCDF Statutes and Byelaws, or for bringing the game into disrepute.

3.1.6      Generating publicity and soliciting funding for future WCDF events.

3.2               The Executive Board shall be comprised of the following six officers: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, Public Relations Officer, and Competition Director.

3.3               The Executive Board shall be democratically elected at a General Assembly meeting. Executive Board members should ordinarily be drawn from delegates from member organisations, but in exceptional circumstances could be drawn from other members of such organisations.

3.4               Upon being elected all officers shall hold their office for a period of two years, after which they may present for re-election again for further periods of two years. All elected officers must fully participate in the current business of the WCDF and fulfil the roles as assigned to them (See 3.6).

3.5               Where a General Assembly meeting does not meet the quorum to carry out its business in a legitimate fashion the outgoing Executive Board shall be retained (subject to individual acceptance) until a future General Assembly meeting can be convened.

3.6               The roles, duties, and powers of the Executive Board officers shall be as follows.

3.6.1       The President shall be the figurehead of the WCDF. The President represents the WCDF in all circumstances, especially at WCDF events, sports forums, public and political functions. The President convenes and presides over General Assemblies and Executive Board meetings.

3.6.2       The Vice-President substitutes for the President in cases of absence or illness. The Vice-President oversees the strict application of the Statutes and Byelaws, and ensures they are updated in line with new resolutions.

3.6.3       The Treasurer is responsible for the management of all finances pertaining to the WCDF. The Treasurer keeps accounts of all financial transactions and presents an annual report to the General Assembly meeting. The Treasurer processes all income (e.g. membership fees, donations, etc) and pays all dues as approved by the General Assembly.

3.6.4           The Secretary is responsible for recording and maintaining the minutes of Executive Board business and General Assembly meetings. The Secretary shall be responsible for all general correspondence on behalf of the WCDF. The Secretary shall prepare the agenda and documents for the General Assembly meeting, and organise the voting process during the General Assemblies. (See 4.14) The Secretary will also act as a liaison person between the WCDF and the FMJD.

3.6.5           The Public Relations Officer (PRO) shall be responsible for obtaining the maximum possible media coverage for events run by the WCDF and for endeavouring to increase the membership of the WCDF.

3.6.6           The Competition Director (CD) ensures that the organisation of all matches and competitions held under the auspices of the WCDF are run in accordance with the Statutes and Byelaws of the WCDF and as directed by the General Assembly. The Competition Director shall be responsible for the drawing up of match contracts and ensures that the results of these events are forwarded to the Ratings Officer of the WCDF.

3.7               All elected officers must submit an annual report of their activities to each General Assembly meeting. 

3.8               All Executive Board actions are recorded as �resolutions�, numbered sequentially, and presented for review by the General Assembly. Such resolutions may be temporary measures or interpretation rulings. These resolutions can either be accepted or rejected by the General Assembly.

3.9                If there is deadlock in a vote taken by the Executive Board the President has an additional casting vote.

3.10            The Executive Board cannot take decisions on the following without (a) a discussion on the matter having been undertaken at a General Assembly meeting and (b) a resolution from that meeting to make specific �

                                                        I.      Changes to the Bylaws,

                                                      II.      Changes to the rules of play,

                                                   III.      Changes to the rating system or qualification criteria for titles.

3.10        In exceptional cases, or when circumstances force a quick decision, the Executive Board can instigate a vote among member organisations by correspondence (preferably electronic). For such a vote to be valid member organisations need at least two weeks for internal consultation before answering. The decision taken must be ratified at the next meeting of the General Assembly.

3.11        In the event of an officer resigning or being removed from office by the Executive Board (Ch.8), the vacant position shall be temporarily filled by a delegate nominated by the Executive Board until the next General Assembly meeting is held. 

4           Chapter 4.                  The General Assembly

4.1          The General Assembly, being the highest authority of the WCDF, exercises the legislative and, unless otherwise defined below, also the executive power.  It monitors the activities of the Executive Board, and of its members.  It decides on such matters as are submitted to it for decision.

4.2          The General Assembly shall be held annually and, if possible at the same location as and during the World Championship qualifying tournament or similar Checkers event, failing which, at a place and on such date as determined by the Executive Board.

4.3          The General Assembly is composed of:

a)       The Delegate from each of the member organisations. Each Delegate is permitted to have one Assistant present at a General Assembly meeting.

b)       The members of the Executive Board.

c)       The chairperson of any committee that the General Assembly or the Executive Board has created from time to time for specific purposes, for example to work on matters relating to ratings, titles, tournament schedules, etc.

d)       The World Champion and the Women's World Champion shall be invited to attend the General Assembly but they do not have voting rights (unless they are also a delegate).

4.4          Every member organisation is represented by its Delegate or by another person (Proxy), accredited

by letter for such representation, and who either belongs to the organisation concerned or is the representative (Delegate or Proxy) of another organisation. The following rules apply to the use of proxy voters.

4.4.1       Every Delegate is permitted to represent, besides his own organisation, only one additional organisation.

4.4.2           A proxy can be assigned to a member organisation only by written authorisation. The letter of assignment must have a signature of the Delegate or of an official authorised by the organisation, as last registered with the WCDF.

4.4.3           An Electronic signature (e.g. Email) is acceptable if verifiable.

4.4.3       In a situation judged by the Executive Board to be an emergency, the General Assembly can approve a Proxy on notification by other means.

4.5          Each member organisation represented in the General Assembly has one vote, which is cast through their delegate or proxy. The other participants present at the General Assembly have a consultative voice only.

4.6          The chairperson at a General Assembly meeting shall be the President and shall be responsible for conducting the meeting.  In the absence of the President the Vice-President shall undertake this function. Where neither the President or Vice-president is present the chairperson should be drawn from the Executive Board officers as decided by the General Assembly delegates.

4.7          Notice of a General Assembly meeting shall be sent to all members by the Secretary of the Executive Board not less than two months prior to the date of such meeting by either registered airmail, by e-mail and/or facsimile, together with the provisional agenda.

4.8          Any member may propose additional items to the provisional agenda, such proposals to be provided to the Secretary of the Executive Board not later than one month prior to the date of such meeting. Additional proposals shall be supported by the reasons for the proposals, and all such proposals must be seconded by another member. After a revised agenda has been sent to members, additional items may be added to the agenda only with the consent of the Executive Board.  Proposals for officers must be submitted not later than one month prior to the date of the meeting.

4.9          A quorum at a General Assembly shall comprise any number of 50% or more of the total number of members.

4.10        The sessions of the General Assembly are public, unless it is decided otherwise by simple majority vote.

4.11        Prior to voting all relevant communications from absent members shall be brought to the attention of those present.

4.12        The President of the WCDF may terminate the discussion of an item if he/she deems the subject adequately covered, with the support of 50% of the delegates present.

4.13        Votes are made orally by roll call.  The order of the roll call to be decided by the drawing of lots at the start of the meeting. Each proposal submitted by the Executive Board is voted upon first. For proposals submitted other than by the Executive Board amendments to these proposals are voted upon first. Supplementary proposals are voted upon only after a decision on the main proposal; they will be discussed and voted upon in the reverse order in which they were made.

4.14        Decisions shall be made with the majority of the votes delivered (including proxy votes), without taking into account abstentions. The Secretary shall organise the voting, count the votes, and ascertain the results. These results are then publicly announced by the President / Chairperson.

4.15        All decisions of the General Assembly are recorded as �resolutions�. All resolutions should compliment the byelaws and never contradict them

4.16        The General Assembly has the power to change byelaws following a proposal by the Executive Board or any member organisation. Two thirds of the votes delivered (including proxy votes), without taking into account abstentions are required to effect such changes.

4.17        In the event of a tie in voting the President shall have an additional deciding vote.

4.18        In the event of a vote of no-confidence in the President, the chairing President cannot lead the assembly for the time of the discussion nor the voting.

4.19            An Extraordinary General Assembly shall be convened by the Executive Board upon request of half of the members within two months of such a request. In urgent cases the Executive Board also has the right to convene an Extraordinary General Assembly. The agenda for an Extraordinary General Assembly shall only comprise those items that have generated the meeting and be sent to members at least one month before the date scheduled for the meeting.

4.20            Ordinarily, the conduct of an Extraordinary General Assembly shall be as for a General Assembly. However the Executive Board shall retain the option of conducting an Extraordinary General Assembly meeting by other means (e.g. telephone conference or via Internet meeting rooms) in order to secure a quorum of members if it is established that a face-to-face meeting may not secure one.

Chapter 5.            World Championship Qualification Tournaments.

5.1               A World Championship Qualification Tournaments (QT�s, also known as a �play-off �) shall be held each year to determine the next challenger to a World Championship title the succeeding year. This will include both the overall World title and a title exclusively for women only, and will relate to both Go-As-You-Please (GAYP) and Three Move Restriction (3 Move) modes of play.

5.2               For organisational purposes the Qualification tournaments to select challengers for GAYP World titles shall be held during the years with uneven numbers (e.g. 2009, 2011, etc) while Qualification Tournaments to select challengers for 3 Move Restriction world titles shall be held during the years with even numbers (e.g. 2010, 2012 etc)

5.3               In order to host a World Championship Qualification Tournament a member organisation must make a successful bid for the hosting of such an event. The process and timeframe for making bids is outlined below.

5.3.1           The Executive Board shall advise all members at least two months (1st October) in advance as to the closing date for bids for hosting World Championship qualification tournaments the following year. The closing date should be 1st December of the preceding year of the Qualification Tournament. (e.g. 1st Dec 2009 for hosting of the Qualification tournament 2010)

5.3.2            All potential bids must be forwarded to the Secretary of the WCDF by 17.00hrs GMT on that date.

 

5.3.3           The bidding member organisation shall specify to the Executive Board all conditions they can offer to the participants, accompanying persons and other officials as well as any entry fees required of the players.  The conditions specified should include details of any offers being made in respect of travel costs, hotel costs, food, and prize money. 

5.3.4           The Executive Board should assign a monetary factor per day, per meal, per room, per player in order to help determine which bid is more appropriate.

5.3.5           The Executive Board shall decide which bid to accept within fourteen (14) days of the closing of bids.

5.4               The words "player", "participant", etc. mean both male and female competitors, unless referring to a specifically Women�s event.

5.5               The number of players entitled to participate in a Qualifying Tournament for a World Championship shall be based on the following principles:

5.5.1           Each organisation, which is a member, shall be entitled to nominate two of their players.

5.5.2           Any organisation which is not a member but which has at least one player as being amongst the world�s top ten players according to the WCDF ratings (See Appendix 2) will be entitled to nominate two of their players. 

5.5.3           The host organisation shall be entitled to enter one extra player.

5.5.4           In the event of there being an odd number of competitors the host organisation will nominate a player to make an even number. This extra player may be drawn from any organisation that is a member of the WCDF.

5.5.5           The loser of the previous World Championship Match at this mode of play (See 5.1) has an automatic nomination to participate.

5.5.6           All nominees should be entered one calendar month before the starting date of the Q.T. Late entries are liable for all their own expenses.

5.5.7           There may be two nominations from the online community [3] subject to qualification procedures determined by the WCDF.

5.5.8           A player announcing his/her withdrawal at least one month prior to the start of a qualification tournament may be substituted by their organisation with another player, subject to the Executive Board agreeing that the substitute player would not weaken the tournament unduly.

5.6               As a minimum, the following playing conditions shall be adhered to;

5.6.1           The games shall be open to spectators.

5.6.2           The actual playing area must be spacious enough to avoid constricting either players or referees. It should have excellent conditions of lighting, temperature, ventilation and quiet, in accordance with the judgment of the referee. No smoking shall be permitted.

5.6.3           The Checkers equipment for play (the table, chairs, checkerboard, Checkers pieces and clock) should comply with international norms.

5.6.4           The spectators must be situated at a suitable distance from the actual playing area. The spectators must be quiet. The area for spectators will be cleared if the spectators are not quiet enough in the judgment of the Tournament Director / Referee.

5.6.5           The organisers should use their best endeavours to arrange for maximum publicity through the media and to make telephone, fax and e-mail facilities available to media personnel.

5.7               The following rules shall apply to Qualification Tournaments;

5.7.1           The Laws of Checkers as endorsed by the WCDF (See Appendix 1) shall be applied to all qualification tournaments.

5.7.2           The time limit in all WCDF World Championship Qualification Tournaments shall be 30 moves per hour for the first hour, then 15 moves per 30 minutes for each succeeding 30 minutes.  These rates of play may be changed at the discretion of the Executive Board in consultation with the tournament hosts but not after details of the event have been sent to competitors.  The first 30 moves per hour shall include those forced by any ballot.

5.7.3           All games will be played with clocks (preferably digital) and both players shall record the moves of each game. 

5.7.4           With sufficient entrants each qualification tournament should comprise a minimum of eight rounds of play with each �round� consisting of two games. Two points shall be awarded for a won game, one point shall be awarded to both players where the result is a drawn game, while no points shall be awarded to a player who loses a game.

5.7.5           The initial pairing of players shall ensure that participants from the same organisation will play against each-other in the first round; with all subsequent draws being made using a �Swiss-System� of pairings (See Appendix 3).

5.7.6           In the event of an entry of less than eight players, the tournament shall be run on a �Round Robin� basis with each participant playing all others.

5.7.7           No points shall be awarded to any player at the conclusion of a round until the referee is in receipt of a signed copy of the games played in that round by that player. The signed copy should represent a complete and accurate record of the games played.

5.7.8           Where there are an uneven number of players competing in a round, it will be necessary to award a �bye� to the player with the least number of total points. (See Appendix 3)

5.8               Only in exceptional cases can a referee permit postponement of a game, and only where it does not involve altering the day already fixed for the end of the tournament.

5.9               In the case of a qualification tournament all ties must be broken by procedures detailed in Appendix 3, namely:

                                             i. The result between the individual players � mini league if appropriate,

                                           ii. Sonneborn-Berger,

                                          iii. Playoff at rapid play rates.

5.10            The winner of the Qualification tournament shall be the player who has accumulated the highest number of points at the conclusion of the tournament.

5.11            In accordance with the highest principles of sportsmanship and honourable conduct, each player must observe the Laws of Checkers (Appendix 1) and do his/her utmost not to distract or annoy their opponent.

5.12            The players shall endeavour to settle all controversial issues by agreement and in the spirit of the principles of the WCDF.

5.13            If a bid is received and awarded to an affiliated organisation and the bid falls through, a sanction shall be applied to that organisation prohibiting them from bidding again for a further two years.

  

Chapter 6.            World Championship Matches.

6.1               A World Championship Match shall be held each second year for determining the World Champion at GAYP and Three Move Restriction modes of play. These shall include both the overall title and a title exclusively for women only, at both modes of play.

 

6.2               For organisational purposes the World Championship Matches at GAYP, both overall and the women�s title, shall be held during the years with even numbers (e.g. 2008, 2010, etc). The World Championship Matches at Three Move Restriction, both overall and the women�s title, shall be held during the years with uneven numbers (e.g. 2009, 2011, etc).

6.3               In order to host a World Championship Match a member organisation must make a successful bid for the hosting of such an event. The process and timeframe for making bids is outlined below.

6.3.1           The Executive Board shall advise all members at least two months (1st October) in advance as to the closing date for bids for hosting a World Championship Match. The closing date should be 1st December of the preceding year of the World Championship Match. (e.g. 1st Oct 2009 for hosting of a World Championship Match 2010)

6.3.2           All potential bids must be forwarded to the Secretary of the WCDF by 17.00hrs GMT on that date.

6.3.3           The bidding member organisation shall specify to the WCDF all conditions they can offer to the participants, accompanying persons, and other officials.  The conditions specified should include details of any offers being made in respect of travel costs, hotel costs, food and prize fund. 

6.3.4           Where a number of bids have been received the Executive Board shall give each player fourteen (14) days to express his or her preferences and then the Executive Board shall decide within a further seven (7) days which bid to accept.

6.3.5           If no bid is received to host a World Championship Match by 1st January of the year in which the match has to be played, then it is the responsibility of the challenger to arrange the match.

6.3.6           Three months notice must be given to the defending champion.

6.3.7           If the Executive Board accepts such arrangements as being reasonable, the champion must play or forfeit his/her title.

6.3.8           If the Challenger has made no such arrangements by 1st September of the year in question, then he/she forfeits their right to challenge.

6.3.9           Despite the onus being transferred to the Challenger to organise the match, the WCDF can also consider late alternative offers by the Champion or a third party.

6.4               The WCDF Laws of Checkers (See Appendix 1) shall be applied.

6.5               The Match Contract shall be drawn up by the Competition Director (CD) in collaboration with the principals involved.  The match contract shall make no mention of a guaranteed amount of prize monies.

6.6               The time limit in all WCDF World Championship matches shall be 24 moves per hour. 

6.7               All games will be played with clocks (preferably digital) and the moves must be recorded by both players. 

6.8               Where a player feels he/she is unable to meet his/her commitments to a World Championship match, he/she may apply to the Executive Board for a postponement of the match where there is still a minimum of three months left prior to the commencement date of the arranged match. Such a decision shall be at the discretion of the Executive Board. Such a postponement shall only be granted where the match can be rescheduled within the same calendar year as the original match.

6.9               A player withdrawing from a World Championship match within three months from the original agreed commencement date of the match shall be substituted by the highest placed available player from the qualification tournament.

6.10            The number of games to be contested during the course of a World Championship Match shall be as follows;

6.9.1       World (3 Move) Championship                      40 games

6.9.2       World (3 Move) Women�s Championship   20 games

6.9.3       World (GAYP) Championship                        24 games

6.9.4       World (GAYP) Women�s Championship      20 games

6.10        Only in exceptional cases can the referee permit the postponement of a game. This can only occur when it does not involve altering the day already fixed for the end of the match.

6.11            In the event of a tied match the defending champion shall retain the title by virtue of being undefeated.

6.12            The WCDF recognises a World Champion�s right to make a voluntary defence of their title to an independent challenger. However such a match must not interfere with the normal schedule of events as outlined in 6.2.

Chapter 7.            World Youth Championships.

7.1                The WCDF shall endeavour to organise a World Youth Tournament each year subject to the following criteria;

7.1.1           The mode of play shall alternate between GAYP and Three Move Restriction each alternative year.

7.1.2           Where possible the venue should be aligned to the World Qualification Tournament event being held that year.

7.1.3           It shall be open to participants who are under 18 years only.

7.1.4           A copy of a participant�s Birth Certificate must be forwarded to the Competition Controller / Referee on entering the event.

7.1.5           The winner shall be declared World Youth Champion at that mode of play.

Chapter 8.            Sanctions.

8.1                The WCDF reserve the ability to apply sanctions against an individual player, official, or member organisation where it is considered that there is adequate reason for doing so.

8.2                Potential reasons for such a course of action might include;

8.2.1           Actions where the offending party [4] brings the game of Checkers into disrepute.

8.2.2           Actions where the offending party brings the reputation of the WCDF into disrepute.

8.2.3           Failure of a World Champion to defend his or her World title against an official challenger put forth by the WCDF without due cause.

8.3                Where a compliant is made to the WCDF that such an action (as given above) has taken place the Executive Board shall appoint one of its members to carry out an investigation into the charge. The investigation shall involve collecting whatever evidence is available, and discussing the nature of the offence with both the person alleged to have caused it, and the complainant.  

8.4                A Report shall be compiled by the investigating officer and presented to the Executive Board, with copies given to both parties.

8.5                Where the Executive Board is of the opinion that a sanction is warranted they shall apply a temporary sanction on that individual or organisation, by way of a resolution, that will apply until the date of the next General Assembly meeting.

8.6                The nature of such a sanction might involve one of the following;

8.6.1            The temporary suspension of that officer or organisation�s membership.

8.6.2            A temporary ban on an individual to participation in upcoming WCDF events.

8.6.3           Withdrawal of the WCDF�s endorsement of a World Champion.

8.7                The Executive Board shall present all details of such an action to the next General Assembly meeting to which the alleged offending person / organisation will be invited to defend such a charge.  A vote shall then be taken by the General Assembly members (see 3.5, 3.14) to either reverse or uphold the temporary decision made by the Executive Board.

8.8                If a bid is received from an affiliated organisation for the hosting of a Qualification Tournament or World Championship Match and that bid fails to materialise, there shall be a sanction applied to prohibit that organisation from placing another bid for any event for a period of two years henceforth.

APPENDCIES:

ml:namespace prefix = st2 ns = "urn:schemas:contacts" />Appendix I. � The Laws of Checkers

Appendix 2.  � Ratings and Titles

  

Appendix 3. � General Tournament Regulations

3.1          Tie breaks available for tournaments are,

3.1.1           Mini League.  This is a comparison between players on the same points.  The results against each of the other tied players form a mini league the players being ordered accordingly.  Should a mini league not be possible due to one or more players having not played or if ties are still apparent then ties are broken as below,

3.1.2            Sonneborn-Berger.  This is the sum of each opponent�s score multiplied by the points scored against that opponent.  The resulting total is ordered highest through lowest to determine ranking, otherwise if ties remain then proceed below,

3.1.3           Playoff.  A playoff should be arranged by the referee under the remit of the event.  If the playoff is to determine a result at the event then a succession of sets of games played at a faster rate as determined by the referee applies.

3.2                Method of conducting tournaments: All rounds shall be played using a �Swiss System� for making pairings and shall incorporate the following basic principles;

3.2.1           In the 1st round all players are in the same score group with 0 points, therefore the initial pairing of players shall be in accordance with 5.7.5.

3.2.2           In subsequent rounds participants shall be paired with opponents of the same score or nearest score in descending order.

3.2.3           No participant shall meet the same opponent twice i.e. no repairing.

3.2.4           In the event of a tournament containing an odd number of players (e.g. following the withdrawal of a participant) the participant with the lowest number of points score shall receive a �bye� in each round.

3.2.5           No participant may receive more that one �bye� in the same tournament.

3.2.6           The participant receiving the bye shall be awarded four points.

3.2.7           Ordinarily the tournament referee shall produce the pairing for each round in an open manner. One or more players may assist in this task if specifically requested to do so by the referee.

  

Appendix 4. � World Titles - General

 

1.        The WCDF recognise the following World Title holders:

1.1  World Three Move Champion � Alex Moiseyev (USA).

1.2    World GAYP Champion � Ron King (Barbados).

1.3    Women�s World Three Move Champion � Amangul Durdveya (Turkmenistan).

1.4    Women�s World GAYP Champion � Amangul Durdveya (Turkmenistan).

1.5 World Youth (3 Move) Championship � 

1.6 World Youth (GAYP) Championships �  Colton Cardie (2007).

1.7 World Mail-play Champion � Mac Banks Jr. (USA).

1.8 World 11 Man ballot Champion �  Alex Moiseyev (USA).

1.9 World Computer Champion � Nemesis (England).

1.10 World Man v Machine Champion � Chinook (Canada).

Notes:

[1]           Checkers and Draughts are synonymous although �checkers� will be used throughout this document.

[2]           Geographical or functional.

[3]           �Online Community� refers to Checker players who play �On-line� via the internet and who enter and contest a tournament run under the auspices of the WCDF for this purpose.

[4]           The individual or organisations whose actions have caused embarrassment or brought the name of the game of Checkers or WCDF into disrepute.